Harry Potter and the Mystery of Myrddin's Torch
by Mysty
Summary: COMPLETE No HBP Spoilers. Written after OoTP. In Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, a legacy from the Potter family draws Harry and his friends into a mystery. Harry and Ginny...Ron and Hermione
1. A New Resolve

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

Story Title: Harry Potter and the Mystery of Myrddin's Torch  
Author: Mysty  
  
**Chapter One  
A New Resolve**  


  
Early morning sunlight streamed through the open bedroom window as a flash of white wings brought a snowy owl to a stop on the small desk. Harry rolled over to shield his eyes from the sun. Too sleepy to face Hedwig, his message bearing owl, he tried to snuggle under the sheet to block out the brightness. Today would be another hot day.  
  
Unable to go back to his blissfully dreamless sleep, Harry sat up straight and ran his hand through his completely rumpled bed hair. Hedwig leapt onto his shoulder and nuzzled Harry's ear. Taking a slow breath, he took the message and returned the owl's affectionate gesture by rubbing her feathery head. The owl seemed satisfied and flew into her cage for a long drink of water.

  
The message was from Hogwarts. "Mmm...Too light to be my O.W.L. results.... Only one way to find out," Harry thought. Sure enough, the letter enclosed was another checking-up-on-Harry note from the professors at Hogwarts. This one was from Professor McGonagall.  
  
_Dear Mr. Potter:  
  
How is your summer going? Hope this letter finds you well and in good spirits. I am writing to ask you to give some thought to the Gryffindor House Quidditch team. As I said in my previous letters, the ban imposed on you last year has been lifted so I anticipate your help next season as our Seeker and team Captain.   
  
Madam Hooch will be writing to you soon to give you her recommendations for additions to the team.   
  
Please let me know how you are doing and what your suggestions are for next year.   
  
Sincerely,   
  
Minerva McGonagall  
Head of Gryffindor House  
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_  
  
Harry had been receiving these thinly veiled requests for his status every few days from either a friend or a professor all summer. Moody had warned the Dursleys that they would need to hear from Harry every three days or someone would be arriving to ensure he wasn't having a difficult time.  
  
The owls were arriving and departing mostly at night or early morning, so Uncle Vernon wasn't complaining about too much suspicious owl traffic. In fact, Uncle Vernon wasn't saying much of anything, which suited Harry fine. The Dursleys and Harry had a truce this summer. They still didn't feed him much, but he wasn't all that hungry. He had a lot on his mind.

  
The traumatic events at the end of the year had brought him to a crossroad. Once the flood of conflicting emotions became less raw, Harry realized he had much to sort out. Clearly many people cared about him. The show of solidarity that his friends made by threatening the Dursleys at Kings Cross station and their frequent owl messages gave Harry a wonderful feeling of community to replace the loss of his family. Yet, he couldn't ignore the fact that he had lost his only semblance of family when Sirius died at the Department of Mysteries last June.  
  
The events of that night had produced a flood of emotions within him. He still cringed when he thought of his tirade in Dumbledore's office. A month wasn't long enough to figure everything out, but Harry had decided one thing. He wouldn't be ruled by his emotions. It was time to choose his own path.   
  
Harry stood up and stretched. Standing a good four inches taller than he had a month ago, he couldn't wait to surprise Ron with his new stature. He might even be up to Ron's nose by now.  
  
Along with his growth spurt, Harry had experienced an interesting increase in magical energy. One morning at the Dursley's, he had a dream about breakfast in bed. He could even smell the food. When he awoke, he was shocked to see a breakfast tray on his desk with a steaming hot mug of tea fixed just the way he liked it and a plate piled high with toast, bacon, eggs and tomatoes. Hedwig stood next to the tray softly hooting for a handout.   
  
He knew that Aunt Petunia would never make him such a feast. First he thought maybe Dobby had somehow followed him to Privet Drive. Finally he realized that he had somehow conjured the breakfast tray while he was half-asleep. How had he conjured something without his wand? He spent that morning in a panic about getting another letter from Mafalda Hopkirk at the Ministry. All day he expected to see ministry officials arriving to snap his wand, but nothing ever happened. Either Mafalda had decided to ignore the infraction or the ministry had never detected it. Every morning since then, Harry started the day by conjuring a nice breakfast tray. Wandless magic wasn't that surprising. He'd seen Dumbledore do it many times. After a few weeks, he didn't even think about it anymore. 

  
Reaching into his desk for some parchment to send McGonagall a return note while he sipped his morning tea, Harry reflected on his summer so far. The Dursley's home had never felt like his home even as a small child. When he arrived there this summer, he moved silently to his small bedroom and shut the door.   


The Dursleys' opinions no longer mattered to him. He wouldn't stand around while Uncle Vernon berated and belittled him. He had held his head high and walked with a purpose out of King's Cross Station and kept going until he was in the relative safety of his room. Maybe Dursley sensed the newfound maturity in his nephew or maybe the image of Mad-Eye Moody stumping up their walkway in Little Whinging had kept Uncle  
Vernon from giving Harry any welcoming warnings or challenging his silent and proud carriage as he walked past them and shut himself in his room. 

  
Harry had decided that he had to stop letting life happen to him. Otherwise, he would be lost in a sea of self-pity, stumbling toward the unknown. If he didn't make plans for his own life, then fate or Dumbledore or Voldemort or even Uncle Vernon would make those plans for him. He couldn't live his life just reacting to everything and everyone anymore. He was going to hold his emotions in check and take charge somehow. 

  
Before he could make plans, he had to first decide what he wanted. Kind of a new idea for him. Harry had never asked himself, "What do I want?" He had been raised to assume that it didn't matter what he wanted. The Dursleys sure didn't care. He couldn't change that. Harry had to start caring himself. What did he want? Did he even know?   
  
The Mirror of Erised had told him that he wanted family. All of his family was in his past. He couldn't change the past. If he wanted family, he needed   
new people. He needed to grow up and marry and have children or adopt some of his friends and make them his family. Marriage seemed a far off in the future idea, but Mrs. Weasley seemed ready to adopt him. She had said he was "as good as family." Did he want that?   
As he finished the note to McGonagall, he took out another sheet to write to Ron Weasley. If he was going to adopt the Weasleys, he should start with Ron. After all, Ron was the first Weasley to befriend Harry. Ron was really Harry's first best friend.   
  
Of course any kind of future was going to have to include surviving his adolescence. Without Dumbledore, he would not have lived so far. Aunt Petunia taking him in as a baby had kept him safe. While he was now willing to acknowledge his gratitude to these two people, at least to himself, he was not willing to let them run his life. Not that Aunt Petunia was interested in the job. Professor Dumbledore was another matter. Harry refused to become a pawn in Dumbledore's game. If he were to survive, he needed to take things in his own hands.   
  
Step one in preparing himself for some kind of future was facing the prophecy that Dumbledore had finally shared with him. Hearing that he would have to kill or be killed was a motivating factor. He couldn't change the prophecy. He wouldn't ignore it either. The fate of the Wizarding world might depend on how Harry dealt with the prophecy. Dumbledore alone knew what Harry faced. He hadn't told any of his friends and he was sure that Dumbledore hadn't told anyone but Harry himself. 

  
Harry was willing to accept Dumbledore's help. He needed that help, but he wouldn't be made into a weapon for Dumbledore to wield. Yet, he knew he   
couldn't go off in his own direction. That kind of thinking had led to the fiasco at the Department of Mysteries. That kind of thinking got Sirius killed.  
  
Shaking off these heavier thoughts, Harry wrote a lighthearted note to Ron telling him about his summertime routines: chores for Aunt Petunia, working out in Dudley's new exercise room and reading ahead to be ready for next year. Since the note could be intercepted, Harry didn't mention meeting with members of the Order of Phoenix over tea at wacky Mrs. Figg's house once a week or taking regular morning runs around Little Whinging.   
  
Harry always wore his sweatshirt hood up as he took his morning run. He also wore sunglasses so he looked more like the Unibomber than Harry Potter. He had negotiated with Aunt Petunia to buy him some cheap Muggle clothes and contact lenses in exchange for the many chores and do-it-yourself home improvement projects she wanted him to do this summer.   
  
Harry finished up his message to Ron and set the two notes aside for Hedwig to take in the evening. Happily thinking about the Burrow, he put on his sweats and sunglasses to go face the new day.  
  
So the first month of Harry's summer had gone swiftly and smoothly. He wasn't over losing Sirius. He didn't think he ever would be, but it felt like life would go on. He would make the rest of his life count for something. The sacrifices that others had made for him would find a purpose. 

A/N Thanks to Hollow Godric for beta reading!

Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	2. What a Boy Wants

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter Two  
What A Boy Wants

Auror training sounded great to Harry. As he walked over to Mrs. Figg's house, he was hoping that Mad Eye Moody would be there for tea so he could press him for details of Auror life. "You should go with your strengths," he thought, "and my strength is Defense Against the Dark Arts." He just hoped that now that he had decided on that goal, something beyond his control didn't hold him back.

As he passed the hedge, he heard a soft swish of cloth over to his left. With his Seeker's reflexes he spun toward the sound pulling his wand out to the ready at the same time. He connected awkwardly with something solid and fell to the pavement with an uncomfortable scrape. Sure enough Mad Eye Moody poked his head out from under his Invisibility Cloak and untangled himself from Harry swearing, "#$%&, Potter. How did you spot me this time?"  
  
With a chuckle, Harry said, "If I tell you, I might not be able to catch you next time. Good to see you, Professor Moody."

"OK, fair enough answer. But one of these days, I'll be the one catching you. Constant vigilance is your only chance," Moody replied.

At this last comment, Harry mouthed the words, "constant vigilance." He and his Hogwarts friends had that phrase ingrained into them during their fourth year by the fake Professor Moody. Harry was learning to live by those words this summer. "What do you hear from Professor Lupin?"

Mad Eye walked on in silence. Once inside Mrs. Figg's kitchen door, he answered, "Careful what you talk about outside, Potter. You never know who is listening. Animagi could be buzzing by your ear pretending to be in search of pollen, when they are really just eavesdropping on you."  
  
"Sorry. But have you spoken to Professor Lupin?" Harry persisted.   
  
As the two walked into Mrs. Figg's lounge, Mad Eye sighed and said in a serious tone, "Lupin is not himself since losing Sirius. He is staying at headquarters, but we never see him. Keeps to himself."   
  
"Maybe I could go and stay with him when my annual sentence with the Dursleys is over," Harry said. "Maybe I could talk to him." Harry stared at his feet while he tried to put aside the horrible guilt he felt in hearing about Professor Lupin. The man had lost his last best friend because of Harry's rash actions. He must be avoiding Harry because he blamed him for Sirius' death.

"Maybe," agreed Mad Eye. "Where's our tea, Arabella?" he called out to Mrs. Figg. Then asked Harry, "Why do you keep calling Remus Lupin and I, Professor? He hasn't been your teacher in years and I have NEVER been your teacher. Call me Mad Eye or Moody. I call you Harry or Potter, don't I? I don't really see myself as the professor type." He shook his head at the thought of himself in professorial robes.

Mrs. Figg came in wrestling with a large tea tray covered with sandwiches and cakes and tea. She had a big smile on her face. "I couldn't help but notice that you have had a growth spurt, Harry. You need to eat more food to keep up with all that new height. Help yourself. I'll wrap the leftovers for you to take home with you." To Mad-Eye she said, "Was that you bellowing?"

Moody ignored her teasing tone and said, "How are the Dursleys treating you, Harry? Do they feed you enough? Is there anything you want me to talk to them about? I notice your Muggle clothes have improved."   
  
"I have a lot to thank you for this summer, Mad Eye. The Dursleys have been decent although I still prefer the Wizarding life to the Muggle life. I can't wait to leave Privet Drive." As he was guzzling tea and sandwiches, thinking of the beauties of the Wizarding world, one of its less appealing aspects stepped out of the shadow of Mrs. Figg's hallway and into the lounge. 'Professor Snape has a habit of slipping out of shadows like an overgrown bat,' thought Harry. Then he stopped himself, remembering that Professor Snape also was skilled at sneaking into his thoughts and eavesdropping.

Officially they had a truce. Harry wasn't sure how Dumbledore convinced Snape to resume his Occlumency lessons, but it must have been good. For his part Harry was determined to do it right this time. He knew he needed the Professor's help.

"Ready for our lesson, Potter, or are you too busy stuffing your face?" Snape said with that sneer he seemed to save just for Harry.

While Mrs. Figg frowned at him and Mad Eye raised an eyebrow, Harry turned to Snape and said evenly, "Thank you for asking, Professor. I would like to finish my tea. Please join us. Would you like a sandwich?" That Harry could say this without sounding utterly sarcastic was a testament to his newfound control over his emotions. He had decided that he was not going to react to Professor Snape and his sneering anymore. Life was too short. Plus it would help with the Occlumency lesson they were about to begin if Harry could detach from his emotional reaction to Snape and clear his mind.   
  
Snape was getting used to this sort of overly polite reaction. His scowl showed he didn't like it. But with a little shake of his head, he simply sat down and said, "Thank you, Arabella, could I trouble you for an extra cup."

The meal went on in silence although Harry thought that Mad Eye appeared to be stifling a laugh. When most of the sandwiches and cake had been consumed, Mad Eye and Mrs. Figg went into the kitchen. Harry asked Professor Snape to begin. "Legilimens!" said Snape without any warning. Harry was ready for him. He had put up a block in his mind calming himself and envisioning a wall. He tried to hold the vision of a brick wall in his mind. After an hour of repeating such assaults on Harry's mind, Snape gave up with a gasp. "You are doing much better, Potter. I never thought I'd see any progress. How are your nightmares? Do you feel your scar?"  
  
Harry hesitated in answering this question. Was Snape asking these questions for Dumbledore? While Dumbledore trusted Snape implicitly, Harry disliked the man more than ever because he could have prevented Sirius' death last June by preventing Harry and his friends from going to rescue him. Snape knew that was their intention and he knew how to contact the other Order members. He could have stopped them. Even so, he kept the information to himself until it was too late. Harry took a moment to calm down before answering, "Scar still hurts sometimes. My nightmares haven't been about Voldemort."  
  
Snape's scowl deepened at this answer. "That's not the answer that will end our lessons together, Potter. I was hoping to hear that you have achieved sufficient prowess in Occlumency to shut out your connection with the Dark Lord. I will report this to Dumbledore."  
  
Harry swallowed his dislike of Snape and his using the term "Dark Lord" and took this chance to ask Professor Snape for a favor. First with a little flattery, he said, "I think the lessons this summer have really helped Professor...I was wondering if you would let me into your N.E.W.T. Potions class. I don't have my O.W.L. results yet, but I have been studying potions all summer. I'm trying to improve. I know there will be a need to work hard if I am going to earn a N.E.W.T., but I want you to know that I am willing to do whatever it takes to be successful in the N.E.W.T. Potions class. Maybe you could suggest some summer reading in potions?"  
  
With an oddly satisfied smile, Snape responded, "Let's just wait and see what your O.W.L. results are, shall we?" He looked like he wanted to say more as he turned to leave. When he reached the door, he said over his shoulder, "Look for a book called _Potions for Dummies_. It might help you close the gaps that your spotty interest in Potions through the years has left you with. Anyway, it's aptly named."

As he left, Harry chuckled to himself. "It's aptly named? Was that really your best shot, Professor?" He had done what he could toward his goal to become an Auror today. He walked home with Mad-Eye and a sack of cakes and sandwiches from Mrs. Figg feeling pretty good about himself.

Waking early as usual on the morning of his sixteenth birthday, Harry was greeted by not one, not two, but count them, fifteen owls. There were owls on his desk and owls on top of the clothes cupboard. Owls lined the end of his bed. Hedwig was stationed at his head as if to keep the other owls in line and keep them from waking up Harry.   
  
'This can't just be my birthday. Do I know this many people well enough to get a birthday card from them?' Harry thought, sitting up and shaking his head to wake up a little bit better. It had rained the night before which cooled the temperature down from the scorching heat they'd had this July. As Harry sat up, the owls began to circle him, some dropping their letters and packages in his lap and some extending their legs to request that Harry untie their burdens.

As the stream of owls was leaving, Harry conjured himself a cup of morning tea and began to open things. Letters first, he chose the biggest and fattest letter because it had the Hogwarts seal. "O.W.L. Results Enclosed" was written above the seal. He decided to set that aside. 'Birthday first, then O.W.L. results - just in case they are really bad news... Oh, who am I kidding?' He tore open the Hogwarts envelope. 'Nine O.W.L.s. Brilliant.' Four Outstanding O.W.L.s on the Practicals in Potions, Charms, Transfigurations and Defense Against the Dark Arts. Exceeds Expectations on most of the theory tests. Even his History of Magic, Divination and Astronomy scores were all Acceptable. Harry had no clue how he passed his Divination tests. He didn't feel like he knew anything about the subject. 'Maybe there isn't anything to know,' he thought briefly. Great birthday present - now he knew he could take N.EW.T. Potions to become an Auror.

The first three letters he opened were addressed with handwriting that he did not recognize. These were letters from D.A. members. They didn't mention his birthday, just thanked Harry for helping them pass their Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L. Ernie Macmillan, Hannah Abbott and Dean Thomas had all earned Exceeds Expectations on their D.A.D.A. O.W.L. thanks to Harry teaching them what he knew in their Room of Requirement meetings.

Next Harry found the letter from Hermione. It was written in her flowery script.

_Dear Harry,   
  
How exciting! OWL results have arrived at last. Twelve OWLS! I can't believe it. I've been so worried about the Astronomy O.W.L. After watching Hagrid and then Professor McGonagall being attacked, I don't think I filled out any of that star chart. Now that I passed, I'm glad I took the Muggle Studies O.W.L. even though I stopped taking the class after third year!_

Happy Birthday, Harry! I hope my package got there OK. I had Flourish and Blotts send it to you directly. We can never be too ready.   
  
Hope the Dursleys are being decent. See you soon. Summer is going so fast!

Love,

Hermione  
  
Harry grabbed the biggest, heaviest package. Ripping open the paper he found Hermione's gift, _High Scoring NEWTS: Preparing for the Nastiest Tests Ever Invented_. 'Typical Hermione. Just her way of looking out for me,' Harry thought. Hermione's first few letters of the summer had been full of helpful suggestions for Harry's grieving process. He had finally convinced her he had things under control, or at least he had convinced her to stop trying to "fix" him.

He fished through the others letters to find Ron's childlike print.

_Dear Harry,_

Happy Birthday, mate! Sorry I can't tell you that in person. Hope you are having a good day anyway. Hope you like your presents. There is no such thing as too much Chudley Cannon memorabilia. Could be worth something someday.

Summer is going by slowly. The most exciting event has been Fred and George moving to London to live above their store. Mum won't let me visit although Fred and George have sworn to take good care of me and even offered to let me work in the store. I could use the money, but Mum still says no.  
  
Ginny is in the same boat. She isn't allowed to go anywhere and Mum wants her doing her homework. This will be her O.W.L. year so I guess that is a good thing. She hasn't heard much from Dean. Some boyfriend he is turning out to be.   
  
Wow, my O.W.L. results came while I was writing you this letter. What are the odds? You will never guess so I will tell you. I got eight O.W.L.s! All of them are Exceeds Expectations except my Astronomy O.W.L. which was an Acceptable. The only O.W.L. I didn't pass was Divination. Big surprise. Eight O.W.L.s is still almost three times as many O.W.L.s as Fred and George earned. Thanks for all your D.A.D.A. help! I'll be thanking Hermione for all the rest.   
  
Can't wait to show Mum.   
  
See you soon,   
  
Ron  
  
Ron's package held a bright orange Chudley Cannons jersey that said "Quidditch Rules" across the chest. As he pulled it out of the box, a few packages of Chocolate Frogs fell out. 'Classic Ron,' Harry thought.

Fred and George sent him a box of assorted pranks. 'Nothing unusual there,' thought Harry, feeling proud of himself for being brave enough to open their gift at all. As a financial backer for Fred and George's joke business, he hoped that they would refrain from practicing their pranks on him. 'Maybe they just feel sorry for me because of Sirius,' Harry wondered, then quickly banished the thought. 'No self pity on my birthday. I am lucky to have so many people who care enough to send me something.'

Ginny had sent a framed drawing she'd done of Harry wearing his Quidditch outfit plus a cheery birthday card telling him that she was glad he would be back to playing Seeker for Gryffindor. He hoped she would be willing to play Chaser now that he was to be the Captain.

The rest of the notes were mostly more thank you's from D.A. members. The only real surprise was a letter from Cho. Recognizing her writing, he couldn't help but be curious. She'd been in the D.A., but she passed her O.W.L.s the year before.

Dear Harry,   
  
First, let me say Happy Birthday! Hope you get lots of presents and have a fun party or maybe go out somewhere.   
  
How has your summer gone? Are you enjoying your time off?

My summer has been much better than last year. My family rented a cottage by the ocean. We ate shellfish and lazed around in the sun for almost a month!   
  
I've been thinking about you. First let me apologize for what happened with Marietta. Maybe I shouldn't have stuck up for her since she betrayed us all to Umbridge, but she is my friend and she needed me. I know Hermione is your friend, but I do think she could have at least told us all that we were signing a hexed piece of paper. Maybe Marietta would have kept her mouth shut if she'd known.   
  
Anyway, that isn't why I'm writing to you. I just wanted to explain better. Last year was a rough time for me. I didn't know what to think or how to feel for most of the time. I like you a lot, Harry. I just always seem to say or do the wrong thing around you. I'm sorry that things didn't work out between us.   
  
Things haven't worked out with Michael Corner either. He was just there to comfort me after we lost the Quidditch Cup. I never liked him the way I like you.   
  
I won't expect a letter or any response from you, Harry. Thanks for reading my letter (I'm assuming you haven't burned this yet). We'll see each other next fall at Hogwarts.

Love,   
  
Cho  
  
Harry couldn't believe it. 'If I live forever, I'll never understand girls,' he thought. How could Cho still like him when they did nothing but disagree? Beyond noticing that she was a very pretty girl, Harry had never found out much about her. She obviously knew nothing about him if she thought he might be having a birthday party or an outing at the Dursleys.   
  
Mr. Weasley had once said that boys should never go just for looks. Harry wondered if maybe that's where he went wrong with Cho. 'Do I want to get back together with Cho?' he thought. Unless she was standing right in front of him, he hadn't thought about her in months. Even the thought of her lazing around in the sun did nothing for him. 'So, I'm over the crush,' he reflected. 'Maybe I wasn't fair about her friend Marietta, but I just can't explain everything about myself to Cho. There's just so much she can't ever know. So, no girlfriend for you, Potter.' The thought made him sad. He couldn't put a name to it, but what he wanted more than anything was someone to love.

A/N: Thank you, Hollow Godric, for beta reading!

Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	3. What a Girl Wants

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter Three  
What a Girl Wants  
  
Ginny Weasley finished writing with a pretty flourish and a small sketch of a snitch. It was her turn to send a check-up-on-Harry note. She was glad to have the chance, she knew she couldn't show her brothers how she felt. Ron was shameless about promoting Harry Potter to Ginny. All summer he had been dropping hints about how well suited they were. How Harry deserved someone more cheerful than Cho. He had also been dropping hints about how unsuitable Dean Thomas was.   
  
If Ron wasn't so thick, he'd realize that Harry was the love of Ginny Weasley's life. She had been star struck when she met him, dazzled by his reputation and his handsome face. Then he saved her life. She'd felt like she belonged to him ever since. Even in the most awkward phase of her crush, he was always kind and considerate. Her brothers made fun of her, but Harry always had a kind, softly spoken word.   
  
As the years went by, her crush had become much more. Now that she knew the real Harry Potter, she admired everything about him. He was brave, handsome, honest, modest and self-sacrificing. Hermione said he had a "saving people thing," but to Ginny that noble attitude was just a part of his personality; he always had to do the right thing even if he wasn't sure what that was. He had to try. She'd do anything for him, including setting aside her deeper feelings and befriending him. That is what Harry wanted from her so that is what Harry would get.

Life at the Burrow had been sweet this summer. Homework and chores had been broken up by Quidditch practice with Ron and helping Fred and George. She heard a loud series of knocks on her door. Had to be the twins. "How is the new Gryffindor Queen of Pranks today?" asked George as the two burst into her room. Fred gave her a swift peck on her cheek.

"Don't you two ever wait to be invited into my room? What if I'd been getting dressed?" Ginny asked with her hands on her hips. She released Pig out the window.   
  
The two looked at each other. "We just never think. Do we, Fred?" mocked George with a fake look of contrition and slow shake of his head as though he was reconsidering his actions. "We should have thought of thinking years ago, George. Might have saved us some trouble," added Fred.

"Enough," cried Ginny as she dropped back onto her bed. "Show me what you brought. What have my genius brothers concocted today?" "First tell us who you were writing to," said George, waving his hand at the window where Pig had disappeared. "Was that a secret message for the lucky Dean that Ron keeps complaining about?"

"How can I become a woman of mystery, if my older brothers know all about me?" Ginny replied with a giggle and a small smile, making George and now Fred even more interested in what she may be up to.

"How can we defend your honor, fair sister, if you won't tell us any of the juicy details of your love life?" Fred asked.

"Love life? Stop with the big brother stuff. On with the pranks. What have you brought me?" demanded Ginny.

The twins turned her around to face her mirror. She had blue hair. "Check it out. A new hair color. Did you even notice the kiss on your cheek? That's how you apply the charm. It lasts for one hour and doesn't affect the prankster unless they forget to put the protective undercoat of lip gloss on first."

Ginny squinted at Fred. "I thought your lips looked especially shiny and moist today, but I didn't want to say anything." She laughed. "Better not let Mum see what you did to my hair. She will have something to say about this! On second thought, better hurry down to breakfast." With a grin she slipped out of her out of her door with the twins chasing her.

Screaming with delight, Ginny raced down the stairs looking back to see Fred and George gaining on her. Smack. She ran into a solid object and tumbled down the last few steps. The object turned out to be none other than her hero, Harry Potter. She landed on top, straddling him with his arms pinned at his sides. She was breathless, still wearing her white summer nightgown, blue striped dressing gown and sporting long blue locks.   
  
Staring up at her blushing and laughing face, Harry said quietly, "Surprise."

She let out a loud laugh and said, "Surprise, yourself." With that she released him and helped him up off the ground. As she gave Harry a hand to help him up, Ginny's expression changed from merriment to reflection as she took in his new height and appearance. She recovered enough to say, "I haven't hurt you. Have I? Fred and George are trying to keep me from showing Mum my new hairstyle." She leaned in and whispered, "A word to the wise, don't kiss Fred this morning." She stared at him as though lost in thought for a moment, then quickly ran into the kitchen in search of her Mum.

Harry and Fred exchanged manly grunts as if to say that neither would be requiring a kiss. Fred and George were both looking at Harry as if considering what to say. 'How's your summer been?' just didn't seem the right thing to say. They knew he must still be upset about losing Sirius.

Harry broke the ice with, "How's the Wheezing business? What's it like to live in Diagon Alley?" The twins were living above their new store in Diagon Alley this summer. Soon all three boys were busy discussing their best new jokes. The twins told stories about the Hogwarts students that had been in to see the store over the summer.

A few minutes later, Mrs. Weasley poked her head out from the kitchen and said, "Anyone for some breakfast? C'mon, Harry, I know you must be hungry. Come tuck in." Harry had eaten well at the Dursleys, but he was still quite lean. All three boys went into the kitchen.   
  
Tonks and Moody were sitting at the kitchen table with Ron. They had been Harry's guards on the broomstick ride to the Burrow. Tonks' hair was the same blue as Ginny's. The two of them were laughing at Mad-Eye, who was telling them a story about an old partner who unfortunately kept an extra wand in his hat. It was meant to be a cautionary tale, but the girls were amused.

Harry's move to the Burrow had been a big secret. Dumbledore decided that it would be safe enough there since the Weasleys had the Fidelius Charm placed on them. Oldest brother Bill was their Secret-Keeper. He was still working for both Gringotts bank and the Order of the Phoenix, living in London and going out properly with Fleur Delacour.   
  
Harry wanted to surprise the younger Weasleys by showing up for breakfast, but now he thought Ginny was the bigger surprise. Not just because of her landing on top of him with blue hair. Watching her eyes sparkle as she laughed at Moody's story, he thought, 'She's definitely different and it's not the hair color. She's not a little girl anymore. Why didn't I ever notice how much fun she is before? She's like a female Fred and George, only beautiful and sexy. Whoa… Where did that come from? This is still Ginny, Ron's little sister.'

Aloud he said, "I took your advice, Ginny, and avoided kissing Fred. It's working for me so far. Thanks." He was a little curious about why she gave him such absurd advice, but mainly he just wanted her to talk to him. Any subject would do. He just wanted her talking to him, looking at him.   
  
"Kissing advice, Ginny, for young Harry? You can do better than just telling him to avoid me. Don't you have some more useful tips on how to kiss a teenage witch?" teased Fred. Then he grabbed at his knee under the table as though he'd just been kicked.

As they settled into a noisy and cheerful Weasley breakfast, Pig flew back in the window and straight to Harry. He snatched the wildly fluttering little bird from the air with ease of a Seeker and detached the note. He read it quickly and smiled at Ginny. "I'm fine. Thanks. Nice Snitch, Ginny. You draw so well." He held up the note for everyone to see her little Snitch sketch. George frowned and turned to a grinning Fred, handing him what looked like a Galleon.

A/N: Thank you, Hollow Godric for beta reading!

Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	4. A World of Our Own

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N wyredsisters: The action picks up as Harry moves to the Burrow and then to Hogwarts. Thanks for saying that about JKR. That was really nice.

P.I.D.: Thanks. Hope you continue to like what you read.

Chapter Four  
A World of Our Own

The next few weeks passed in adolescent bliss. Harry was still shadowed by the events at the Department of Mysteries last June, but the Weasleys were determined to make the most of their chance to include Harry in familial harmony.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were both busy with the Order of the Phoenix so they weren't home very much. Between his work at the Ministry and his missions for the Order, the teenagers rarely saw Mr. Weasley. Mrs. Weasley was usually home for dinner, but she seemed to be gone before breakfast no matter how early Harry woke up. She was always friendly and nice, but Harry realized that he wasn't really alone in fighting the evil that was rising up in the wizarding world. People like the Weasleys were resisting every way they could.

Thoughts of fighting evil were mostly set aside during Harry's stay at the Burrow. His days were full of Quidditch and picnics by the pond. In quiet moments, Harry had been able to speak to both Ron and Ginny about last June. Sometimes they talked about Sirius. They'd all spent time at Grimmauld Place with Sirius during the past year. Harry was starting to remember some of the good times he spent with Sirius instead of constantly reliving the night he lost him.   
  
The sun was already high in the morning sky. The three teenagers had decided to go swimming and the boys were upstairs getting ready. Through the window came a gray owl with a letter addressed to Ron from Hermione. "What does she say?" Harry asked casually, not bothered that Hermione wasn't writing to him. She probably figured he was still at the Dursleys.

"She's coming to visit soon," answered Ron.

Rolling his eyes at Ron's quick answer, Harry quickly put on a pair of old baggy shorts and grabbed a tee shirt. "C'mon, Ginny's already down at the pond. Let's go swimming!" Not surprisingly, Harry beat Ron down to the pond to find Ginny standing in a small grassy area picking flowers or something. From far away she seemed to have a yellow ribbon suspended in the air around her turning slowly as she turned and swayed in the little meadow. As Harry got closer he realized the ribbon was actually a stream of small yellow butterflies. They seemed to follow her as she sang a quiet little song. Her voice sounded sweet. It sounded like a children's song. She was a lovely vision - youthful and magical. Harry couldn't help but laugh.

She stopped when she heard his voice. He was grinning at her, his eyes intense and sparkling. She studied her hands to avoid his gaze and tried not to blush. "So you caught me, Harry. In my spare time, I like to chase butterflies."

Harry had stopped laughing when she noticed him. She looked wonderful. He struggled to speak, swallowing hard, but his voice cracked anyway. "Looked like the butterflies were chasing you, Gin. How did you do that? I don't see your wand?" She was wearing a blue sundress that didn't seem to have any pockets.

"Didn't you ever make magical things happen when you were a little boy, Harry?" she asked.

"Why do you think the Dursleys locked me in the cupboard?" he answered lightly.

Ginny winced, knowing that Harry's light tone covered his true feelings about that cupboard. "Well, when I was a little girl, Mum taught me a song about butterflies and I used to wish for them to follow me. It's just Wishing Magic, but it still works for me." Her eyes were sparkling.

Ginny's summer growth spurt had included a graceful rounding out of her figure as well as a couple of inches in height. She still had big brown, half-moon shaped eyes and freckles sprinkled across her nose and cheeks, but the freckles had faded as her face matured. Her hair had grown past her shoulders. Her version of Weasley red had darkened over the years, but the summer sun had brought out beautiful gold highlights.

Harry took in the whole image, noticing every detail, as he watched her explaining the butterflies. He was close to her now - close enough to see the golden flecks in her smiling brown eyes.   
  
'He's close enough to touch,' thought Ginny as she looked back into his brilliant green eyes. She dropped her gaze, staring at her feet, then stole a glance out of the corner of her eyes at his smooth, broad chest. He was still slim, but toned from fitness training.

His voice sounded deeper as he said, "Does Wishing Magic work like this?" He waved his hand in front of her and produced a beautiful white lily.

She gasped and took the flower he held out to her. She looked back up into Harry's eyes which were now staring darkly into hers.   
  
Before she could speak, they heard Ron shouting, "Last one in has to do all Mum's chores for the rest of the day!" He passed them both at a run.

Flowers and butterflies all forgotten, Ginny shouted, "Not fair, Ron." She quickly pulled off her sundress, revealing a plain, one piece swimming suit. It may have been plain, but, like all swimming suits, it concealed nothing of her pretty, slim figure. Harry was stunned, unable to move. When did little Ginny Weasley start looking like that? He didn't trust himself to speak.   
  
Without noticing Harry's reaction, Ginny ran off to jump into the water after Ron, making as loud and big of a splash as she could. Harry inched toward the water and waded in slowly, glad to cool down. He'd never really learned to swim at the Dursleys.   
  
Ginny and Ron were splashing each other. She was yelling at him to do his own chores. Harry just enjoyed the show. She'd gone from charming butterflies to screaming and splashing her brother within a few moments. She was fascinating and full of life.   
  
Harry suddenly wished she was splashing him instead of Ron so he snuck up behind her and sent a wave of water crashing over her head. Maybe a little magic went into the splash because it was a tremendous, drenching wave. Both she and Ron stopped. Ginny turned on Harry, laughing and gasping for air. "You're not supposed to use magic, Harry. You're not old enough! And Ron, are you going to let Harry drown your sister? Help me get him." They both started splashing Harry.

They splashed and paddled around the pond until lunch time. Mrs. Weasley was busy with the Order today, so they were on their own for lunch. As the three of them were lying in the sun drying off, Ron and Ginny were teasing each other about which one of them should make lunch.   
  
Harry closed his eyes and said, "Let me." With a wave of his hand, a tablecloth covered with food appeared: plates piled high with sandwiches, fruit, a bag of crisps, chocolate biscuits, a bowl of strawberries, a jug of pumpkin juice and some metallic cans.

"Whoa! What did you do? Harry, you're in trouble now. No kidding! You shouldn't be doing magic. Remember last summer. They'll have you up on charges!" said Ron, genuinely distressed because he was sure Harry was in serious trouble.

"Relax, Ron," said Ginny. "Harry didn't use his wand. He just wished the food here. Right, Harry?" She was wearing her sundress again and looking up at Harry trustingly.   
  
"I've been doing it all summer, Ron. At first it was kind of an accident, but when I didn't hear from that Mafalda Hopkirk at the Ministry, I figured it must be all right. Either the Ministry doesn't care if I make myself some food or they can't detect Wandless Magic. Tuck in." Harry already had a sandwich in his hand. As an afterthought, he added, "Maybe we should keep this Wandless Magic thing to ourselves. OK?"

Ron and Ginny both nodded. They knew how hard it was for Harry to be different all the time. This would just be one more thing for people to comment on. Imagine what Rita Skeeter would do with it.   
  
"We can tell Hermione when she gets her, of course," said Ron. Nodding his agreement, Harry asked, "When is Hermione coming?" No one answered his question.

Instead, Ginny held up one of the shiny cans and asked, "What's this, Harry?"

"Haven't you ever had a soft drink? It's a Muggle beverage. I would have thought that your dad would have brought some home. Well, you pull the little tab on the top and it opens a hole and you drink. There's pumpkin juice if you'd rather," Harry answered with a twinkle in his eye.

She knew something was up. Harry had that look. Her eyes narrowed and she said, "You first."

Harry popped the top of one and took a long satisfying drink and softly burped. "Pardon," he said. Smiling, he went back to eating his sandwich.

Still a little suspicious, Ginny copied Harry. Her burp was softer. "Does it always make you burp?" she asked.

Ron took one of the cans, shook it up and said, "Let me try." Before Harry could say anything about shaking it, Ron's soft drink had sprayed all over him and was continuing to flow out of the can. "What the!" Ron sputtered as the other two laughed at him. Ron stood up, towering over them. "I can't believe you tricked me, Harry."

"It wasn't a trick. I forgot to say, 'Never shake the can.' Sorry, Ron," said Harry, still laughing at him. "It's the bubbles," he added lamely, trying to stifle his laughter. He was starting to worry. While Harry was over six feet now, Ron was even bigger and still frowning at him.

"Brother, dear. Why don't you go jump in the lake to get the sticky stuff off of you?" said Ginny, still grinning her amusement.

Ron glared, but looking from Ginny to Harry as though he had a sudden idea, he surprised them both by taking her suggestion.   
  
Alone for a moment, they smiled at each other. Harry said, "I really didn't mean to trick him. Soft drinks are one of the few things about the Muggle world I miss. I thought you guys might like to try it." He shrugged.

"It's his own fault. We all warned him to take Muggle Studies. These things can be tricky for a wizard with no Muggle experience. And the drink is very good, Harry. It tickles. Thanks for the whole lunch. These are my favorite chocolate biscuits."

"I know," answered Harry without explanation. Ginny and he continued to have a quiet conversation while Ron was gone. They smiled and laughed, enjoying the sunshine and each other's company.

Watching Harry and Ginny relaxing together, Ron decided to take an extra long time washing off in the pond. The chess master in him had formulated a plan to help his best friend and his sister get to know each other better. 'If only they could see what I see!' he thought.

Ron's summer had been restful so far. He had recuperated fully from being attacked by the brain in the Department of Mysteries. The whole experience had given Ron a new attitude. He was the same old silly Ron most of the time. He just seemed to be taking some things more seriously.

Harry's new resolve to control his emotions and plan for the future struck a chord with his friend. They had a common goal. Both boys wanted to be Aurors so they talked about the training that they would face. Both Harry and Ron had easily provoked tempers. They knew they had let Malfoy and Snape set them off in the past, but not any more.

"Do you reckon Snape will let me take the Potions N.E.W.T. class?" Ron asked Harry. The two boys were getting their brooms out of the Weasley shed so they could practice a little Quidditch in the meadow. Ron had received an E on his Potions O.W.L. While Harry had received one more O.W.L. than Ron, Ron's overall scores had been higher. Like Harry, Ron wanted to go into Auror training after Hogwarts and that meant taking N.E.W.T. Potions with Snape.

"I don't know, Ron. Remember me telling you about my campaign to get into N.E.W.T. Potions myself. Why don't you try writing to Snape or Professor McGonagall? Maybe she could help... If worse comes to worse, Hermione and I can share what we study with you and you can take the N.E.W.T. independently," Harry offered, wondering if they allowed independent N.E.W.Ts. "Anyway, don't let Snape stand in the way of what you want. He may be a big git, but we can't let him sabotage our plans."

"Nice try, Harry. Snape never gives a Gryffindor a break and McGonagall has no authority over him," Ron said, not convinced.   
  
"Don't you see? We have to decide what we want and then go after it," Harry said. "If we don't know what we want, we'll never get what we want. If we know what we want and don't do everything in our power to get what we want, we'll still never get what we want."

"That's possibly the most logical thing you ever said to me, Harry. Maybe we should play some wizard chess and see if you've improved," said Ron, laughing. Nodding his head, he paused, then said, "Do you think that applies to girls?"

"Do you mean do girls get to go after what they want, too? Of course!" answered Harry, puzzled.

"I mean do you think we should decide which girl we want and then go after her?" Ron's eyes were glazing over.

Harry looked at his friend and said, "Yes, Ron. I think you should go after Hermione." Ron stared at Harry with his mouth open like he had something to say but wasn't sure what, so Harry continued, "It's obvious to everyone, Ron. Except maybe you and Hermione. All that fuss over Viktor Krum!"

Ron sputtered, "What are you on about, Harry? Can't one friend be concerned about another?" Watching Harry just roll his eyes, Ron changed the subject. "How about that Dean Thomas? Not a word from him for two weeks. Some boyfriend he's turned out to be. Ginny deserves much better."

Harry nodded. "Ginny is amazing. How do you know Dean hasn't been writing to her? Oh, by the way, when is Hermione coming?" Harry asked.

"I pay attention, Harry. She's my sister. I have to look out for her." Ron seemed to be studying Harry's face, not rising to the baiting question about Hermione.

"What is it? Do I have something on my face?" Harry asked.

Ron stared at Harry wondering how his friend could say that Ginny's amazing like it was just the truth and had nothing to do with him. Shaking his head, he said, "No, your face is fine. I'm just trying to figure something out. Here she comes."

Ginny sprang out of the back door of the Burrow as though she had been released from captivity. She was dressed for the hot summer day in baggy khaki shorts and a white tank top. Wisps of golden red hair escaped her ponytail and her brown eyes shone as she spotted the boys near the broom shed. "Quidditch!" she called, delighted to have some morning activity. Harry handed her the Cleansweep with a lopsided grin. Bursting with energy, Ginny kicked off the ground and away. Looking over her shoulder at the two boys still on the ground, she shouted "Come on, you can at least try to catch me." With that she raced toward the meadow. Harry took off like a shot on his Firebolt. Ron took his sweet time following.

Harry slowed as he caught up to Ginny on the faster broom and said, "What did you have for breakfast Gin? Maybe we should feed it to the team before our matches this year." Then he zoomed out in front of her laughing. Flying was his element. It made him feel powerful and free. Add in flying with Ginny, and he was blissful. He felt like nothing could touch them.

Ginny loved hearing Harry laugh like that - really laugh out loud - like he was really happy. 'When did he start calling me Gin?' she wondered as she sped up to follow him. The three teenagers played Quidditch all morning. Ron said he needed lots of practice goalkeeping so Ginny and Harry teamed up as Chasers to pound him. Ron's plan to get them together gained resolve while watching Harry and Ginny happily playing tag and flying Chaser routines like they were performing some graceful airborne dance. They responded to each other's movements like they could read each other's thoughts. They returned to the Burrow at lunch happily exhausted.

They had promised Mrs. Weasley they would de-gnome the garden after lunch. They didn't get started right away. Ginny wandered outside saying she was going to read for a while. Ron and Harry went into the lounge to finish their game of Wizard's Chess. Of course, Ron won. Harry's king finished by throwing himself to the board and quivering in front of the knight who had trapped him. Ron offered to put the pieces away so Harry went outside.

He found Ginny asleep in the back garden under the dappled shade of the apple tree. She was stretched out with her head cushioned on a pillow, her head thrown back slightly. The book she had been reading was slipping out of her hand with her index finger still marking her place. Her hair was fanned out around her and the angle of her head exposed her white throat.   
  
Harry thought she looked beautiful. He tried not to make a sound so he could look at her a while longer. Remembering Ron would be there any minute, he decided to wake her up. Conjuring fairies with a charm he'd learned from Professor Flitwick, he had them shower her with little sparks. The fairies circled her sleeping figure throwing multi-colored flashes of light that flickered like glitter and went out. Soon a glowing rainbow of color surrounded the sleeping figure of Ginny. Harry smiled. She was still sleeping. "Oi, Ginny!" he called. "Wake up."

Her eyes flew wide. She gasped and dropped her book. "What is it? What's happening?" Then she saw Harry looking at her with a crooked grin so she tried to regain her composure. "I'll get you for this, Potter," she said, but she smiled when she said it.

"What is the payback for waking someone up with fairy dust, Weasley?" he returned still grinning. "I couldn't let you sleep all afternoon. We have chores to do."

As they spun the tricky gnomes over the back fence, Harry listened to Ginny tell gnome stories from their childhood. Ron laughed, "Remember the time Fred and George made those apples chase you, Ginny? Ginny was about six or seven years old when Fred and George decided to play a prank on Percy. He was being a prat about something and they set up their revenge in the garden so they wanted Ginny to stay away."

"If you ask the twins, they were just trying to protect their little sister from the target prank zone, but they decided to convince me that gnomes were evil and scary by telling me all sorts of stupid stories," said Ginny holding up a gnome that was shaking its little fist at her while she smiled sweetly at it before spinning it over that back fence.

"Instead of scaring her away, curious Ginny crept into the garden when no one was around and began to play with the mischievous gnomes," continued Ron. "She thought they were really funny. She was laughing and playing a sort of hide and seek game with the gnomes when she accidentally tripped the Percy prank Fred and George had left. A whole bushel of apples that the twins had charmed started flying through the air toward Ginny. They surrounded her head."

"They just circled around me, blocking me view," interrupted Ginny, starting to blush.

"She screamed like a banshee until Mum came out of the house to rescue her," finished Ron. "Mum was furious that the twins would scare sweet little, defenseless Ginny. It didn't seem to help when they said they were just trying to prank Percy. They were grounded for a month."

When Ron's back was turned, Harry reached over to Ginny and with a wave of his hand conjured her a big red apple. "Here's a good apple memory to replace the bad one, Ginny," he said. She gave a little gasp of surprise as he reached up to her face and tucked a wisp of red hair behind her ear. "You've done that a lot for me this summer." He returned to de-gnoming with a smile.

Ginny smiled, too. Their time together had been full of little moments like that. Ron didn't seem to mind or maybe he never noticed. Anyway, she was falling deeper in love with Harry every minute they spent together. She knew he only wanted her friendship, but she couldn't help how she felt. She could tell it meant a lot to him to have her undemanding company. He needed friends to support him. It was helping him heal.

He talked about his childhood with the Dursleys; the painful experiences that helped make him so determined to be kind to others. He told her about Hagrid rescuing him from Uncle Vernon and his astonishment that he was a wizard. Hogwarts, Sirius and flying, these were the stories Harry told.

Ginny talked about life at the Burrow. Harry was amazed that she never seemed to need air when she spoke - not that he minded listening. In return, Ginny just listened when Harry talked. He felt like she just understood no matter how dark and desperate his story. After all, she had been through some difficult experiences herself with Tom Riddle and the diary. He could tell her anything. He definitely told her about things he didn't feel like telling Ron, such as his fear that Professor Lupin blamed him for Sirius' death. He even told her about the prophecy. Talking to Ginny alone, in a sunny meadow next to a beautiful pond was like having their own private world.   
  
One warm August night found the three teenagers crowded around two telescopes in the back garden. Ron had read in his Astronomy textbook that August 19th would be the best night for falling stars and suggested that they should try to stay up late enough to see the show. They had sleeping bags, snacks and telescopes all set up.   
  
The Weasleys owned two wizarding telescopes. Percy had left a small one behind. The other telescope was ancient and bulky. It had probably had been around for centuries. They could share. Ginny sat between Ron and Harry on top of her sleeping bag because it was a warm night. It was her turn with the ancient telescope that she was sharing with Ron.   
  
She had her Astronomy book spread out on her lap. She was absent-mindedly twisting a lock of her hair that had escaped her messy ponytail. Her face was scrunched up with the effort of finding Cassiopeia. Harry and Ron were both snacking on pumpkin biscuits and talking about the Chudley Cannons.

"If they could trade Geoffrey Smith-Knightly for Ryan Miggs as their Chaser, they could win more games this year," said Ron with feeling. Ron clung to the prospect of a victorious Cannons season each year despite any evidence to support his hopes.

"You are such an optimist. What can the Cannons offer Miggs? He'd be leaving the team that won the cup last year. No amount of galleons would make it worth his while," argued Harry gamely.

"Whoa...," said Ginny. "Check this out." She had her eye glued to the telescope.

Both Harry and Ron could see the shower of meteors without the telescope. Harry quickly used Percy's old telescope to see what Ginny was so excited about. It was worth losing sleep over. Showers of light shot through the air and disappeared. 'Wonder what Firenze would say,' thought Harry. "Here, Ron," he said. Harry moved closer to Ginny so that Ron could have a turn with the telescope.

Ginny seemed mesmerized by the show. She had on the same khaki shorts and white tank top that she usually wore. The starlight made her glow. Her face shone. She had pulled out her ponytail so her hair fell in waves down her back. "It's so beautiful," she said. "Do you want to look through this telescope, Harry?"

"It's just as beautiful without the telescope, Gin," Harry replied. Was he still looking at the sky?

Ron coughed and said, "Be right back. I need my book." He hurried indoors. "Ron's been so forgetful lately," said Ginny, glad that she had Harry alone under the stars.

Harry laughed and said, "Did you find Cassiopeia, yet? Funny you should have trouble with that one, being a Weasley and all."

"Which Weasley is known for their gift for Astronomy, Harry? What are you on about?"

"Good point. Well, isn't Cassiopeia the one shaped like a W? Here, I'll show you." He reached his right arm around her shoulder, took her right hand and reached toward the sky. He drew the letter W with her index finger held up to the constellation.

Her eyes followed their arms up to the sky hardly daring to breathe. She could hear Harry's soft breathing in her ear. Did he know how he affected her? Struggling to force her heart to stop pounding so loud, she said softly, "There it is."

Harry laughed quietly and said, "What else shall we look for? How about Sirius, the Dogstar?" He seemed completely at ease as he pointed out the star that gave his godfather his name.

Seeing that he was calm, Ginny breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed against his chest. "What's your favorite constellation, Harry?" she asked.

"Funnily enough, I don't have a favorite, Gin. But Sagittarius seems particularly bright tonight," he answered continuing to point out constellations with her finger. She felt so warm in his arms. He never wanted to let her go. Neither one noticed that Ron was still absent as they sat there peacefully staring up at the sky with Harry giving Ginny a tour of the heavens. They were lost in their own little world.   
  
From the kitchen window, Ron watched them laughing and talking out in the yard. He wanted them to have their moments. He wasn't quite ready to leave Harry alone with Ginny overnight, but watching them together looking so happy and at ease convinced him that Harry and Ginny were meant to be together. They both deserved to be happy. As a good friend and a good brother, it was his job to help.

Hermione arrived for the last week of August. She took the Knight Bus to Ottery St. Catchpole and walked to the Burrow. The Floo Network was blocked for security reasons. Two weeks in Spain had brought out the highlights in her hair which she was wearing at shoulder length. She was wearing a yellow sundress that showed off her tan shoulders and practically dragging her heavy trunk and Crookshanks' empty cage. She had let the cat out when they were within sight of the Burrow.

As she walked up the drive she saw Ginny and Harry disappear into the forest on their broomsticks before Ron burst out of the front door and greeted her with a big shout. 'At least someone is happy to see me,' she thought, wondering if maybe Harry and Ginny had forgotten she was coming today.

"Let me take your bag, Miss Granger," Ron said, giving her a big goofy grin. He hefted her trunk onto his shoulder as if it was a box of feathers instead of a large trunk full of books. "We didn't think you'd be here until lunch."

"That explains why I just saw Harry and Ginny heading out toward the woods," said Hermione. She looked at Ron curiously. "So, why aren't you joining them?"

Ron's ears colored slightly as he listened to her. Even though he towered over Hermione, he still stammered, "I er... I've got some chores to do for Mum."

Hermione's eyes narrowed and she pursed her lips before replying, "And you wanted Harry and Ginny to spend as much time alone together as you could manage." She nodded her head as if to show that she at least agreed with herself. As always, she saw right through Ron.   
  
"Got it in one, 'Mione. Wow, you've only been here for a couple of minutes and you already have me figured out." Ron said, smiling down at her. "Now you're here, you can help."

"What about Dean? Remember Dean, your roommate, Ginny's boyfriend..." Hermione began.

Ron cut her off with. "He's not right for her, 'Mione. Harry and she were meant to be. Besides she hasn't heard from Dean much this summer. Are you sure he is really her boyfriend? Wouldn't he owl? Wouldn't he visit?" Just as Hermione shook her head thinking maybe Ron was only clueless about his own heart, he leaned in close and said, "If he really liked her, wouldn't he wait around staring at the front lawn just in case she showed up early?" Then he swept past her and into the house, leaving one Hermione Granger stunned into silence.

As lunchtime approached, Ginny and Harry hadn't returned so Ron and Hermione went to look for them. They weren't playing Quidditch in the meadow. As it was a hot day, the second place they checked was the pond. Quiet voices and laughter broke the stillness.   
  
Ginny was stretched out on her stomach along a low, wide branch that hung over the pond. Her long hair was hanging down on one side of her face. Harry was shirtless. His hair was dripping wet as though he had just finished swimming. He sat on the bank, leaning against the trunk of the same tree and looking adoringly up at Ginny. He reached up and tucked something behind her ear. She was laughing at something he'd said and looking at him with an equally adoring look. Neither had heard the other teenagers approaching. They were lost in conversation and they both looked very happy.   
  
'Ron is a genius,' Hermione thought. She knew that Ginny's old 'crush' had deepened into love over the years, but she could see with her own eyes that Harry had begun his own Ginny Weasley fan club. It was written all over his face. She had never seen him look like that. He looked so relaxed and so...happy.   
  
Ginny saw them first and cried out. Harry frowned at the interruption until he saw who it was, then he was on his feet and racing to greet Hermione crushing her in a big hug. "Hermione, it's so good to see you," he said with a big smile. Whatever she was expecting, it wasn't this suddenly tall-tan-smiling-cheerful-obviously wrapped up in love Harry.

"H-Harry. Wow, you've had quite a good summer, haven't you?" Hermione responded with a smile. She looked pointedly at Ginny, who blushed. "And Ginny! You look like life is good, too. Where did you get a lily?" she asked, touching the white flower behind Ginny's ear. Ginny pulled it off and blushed.

"The end of the summer has been better than the beginning -- better than I thought it could be at the beginning. I'm lucky to have such good people for my friends," Harry said while staring at his feet. He still had his shy moments. Looking up at Hermione, he continued, "You must be starving. Ron, have you finished clearing out that closet for your Mum? Let's go in for lunch." To Hermione, Harry said, "Ron has been doing extra jobs around the house to earn pocket money and he won't even let me help." Harry put his shirt on and slung both broomsticks over his broad shoulder. He turned to Ginny and held out his hand, "Shall we?"

Hermione watched in wonder as the two turned to walk toward the Burrow comfortably holding each other's hand. She turned to Ron and said aloud this time, "Ron Weasley. I think you are a genius."

"Right you are, 'Mione," was his response before he reached for her hand to follow them. "I probably am."

A.N.: My heartfelt thanks to Hollow Godric for beta reading this chapter!

Thanks for reading!


	5. Rude Awakenings

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N

lord tartutus: Hello again. Thanks for writing. I'm trying to update quickly because the action will begin soon.

OompahLoompah: Thanks for your note. JKR made Ginny such a fun character. She must be meant for Harry.

Wytil: I'll try to remember about the fluff alert. This is my first story so I'm learning. Anyway, future chapters have action, drama and obstacles to overcome as the school year begins. Thanks for reviewing.

Chapter Five  
Rude Awakenings  
  
_She ran her hands through his hair, giggling softly. He reached up to her ponytail and pulled the holder loose, making her red and gold hair fall all around their faces which were suddenly very close. The smell of strawberries and honey surrounded them. Her lips were moving...  
_  
Ron let out a loud snore, waking Harry from his dream with a start. Thankful that Ron was sleeping and couldn't read his thoughts, Harry rolled quickly out of bed, putting his feet on the cold floor.   
  
Harry realized that he had fallen in love with Ginny Weasley. He'd been dreaming about her every night. How could he stop himself? She was a wonderful mass of contradictions that fascinated him; smart, but silly; bold, but shy; kind, but wicked in her sense of humor. And she was beautiful.

While he could admit it to himself, he had no clue what to do about it. Ginny had offered him her friendship this summer without reserve. He could set aside his deeper feelings. If she wanted his friendship, then that is what she should have. Her friendship was quite something. It had become very important to him.

Harry smelled sausage as he so often did on awakening at the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley was probably already setting up their breakfast although the sun seemed to be barely up. The sky was still slightly pink. Many days she left so early they wouldn't see her until dinner so Harry hurried through his morning routine hoping to catch her.  
  
He must have been too quiet to be heard as he came downstairs because he couldn't help but hear Mr. and Mrs. Weasley talking. "They shouldn't ask Harry to get involved. He is still at school. We need to stand up for him, protect him. Who else does he have?" Mrs. Weasley sounded upset.

Arthur answered, "Try not to worry, dear. Dumbledore agrees with you that Harry needs to be protected. You should have heard what he said about the Dursleys. He's happy that Harry is here with us. He won't take him away until school starts..." His voice trailed off as Harry came downstairs. 

"Good morning," Harry said, trying to sound normal so they wouldn't think they'd been overheard. Molly and Arthur froze. Harry figured he might as well drop the pretense so he said, "Sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop. Please don't worry about me. I'm all right. Whatever happens. It will be OK."

Molly sighed and said, "Let me get you some breakfast, dear. If you are all going to Diagon Alley today, you'll need something good to eat."

"Thanks. That's what brought me downstairs - the smell of your cooking," Harry answered with a grin. Mrs. Weasley glowed with his compliment. Feeding hungry teenage boys was her thing. She loved it when it made them happy.

Arthur relaxed, too. "Tonks and Moody will be tagging along on your shopping trip today, Harry. You won't recognize Tonks of course. Moody will be invisible." Arthur thought that Harry took that well considering he didn't usually want to be tailed.

Harry was glad that Aurors would be tagging along with them today. He was nervous about showing his face in public, not because of the attention from regular people, but from the very real possibility that Death Eaters might attack. "It's good that Moody and Tonks will be there. I haven't been to Diagon Alley for such a long time. It will be great to see Fred and George's store," answered Harry.They planned to take the Floo Network to Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. Anyone watching the network wouldn't be suspicious of Floo traffic between the Burrow and twin's store. Then to Gringott's Bank and the various other shops."That's right. You haven't had a chance to see your financial investment at work," Mrs. Weasley interjected. "Thanks so much for helping the twins make their dream come true, dear. I'm glad you believed in them. You've all convinced me. Their Wheezing business is booming. I've never seen them happier." The twins had started their joke shop with the money Harry earned winning the Triwizard tournament over a year ago.   
  
"They made their own dreams come true, Mrs. Weasley. Besides, the wizarding world needs something to laugh about, now more than ever," Harry answered between mouthfuls of porridge.

A sleepy Ginny appeared at the door still wearing her pajamas and dressing gown. Harry couldn't help but smile at the yawn she tried to cover up. "Let me get you some tea, Gin," he offered. He knew just how she liked her tea. Ginny took the cup without comment. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley didn't seem to notice the interchange.

A loud crash in the living room announced the arrival of Fred and George. "Don't anyone get up, we can help ourselves," said Fred grabbing a plate off the counter and approaching the breakfast dishes on the stove. Almost at the same time, Ron and Hermione arrived together at the bottom of the stairs looking very fresh. Hermione was ready to go shopping.

Ginny groaned looking up at her neat, crisp outfit. "I bet you wrote a shopping list, too. Didn't you?" She accused. "I'm just not ready for today."

"Maybe we should put it off..." Harry began.

Hermione and Ron both interrupted with, "NO!"

Ron continued, "The Aurors have scheduled themselves to be there. We had the Floo Network reopened for the day. It's just too much trouble to reschedule."

"We don't have too many days left before we have to be on the Hogwarts Express," finished Hermione."It's OK," said Ginny. "I just need a little time to get ready." She left the table with a last glance at Harry as she began to climb the stairs. He had indeed followed her exit with his eyes. They smiled at each other as their eyes met before she was out of sight.When they arrived in Diagon Alley, Fred stepped forward and said, "WELCOME TO WEASLEY'S WIZARDING WHEEZES! Today is Harry Potter day. Step up to meet The-Boy-Who-Lived in person." Fred and George were grinning broadly. Harry was thankful that the store was all but deserted at this early hour, then he noticed a counter devoted to Harry Potter memorabilia, tee shirts, photos and cards.   
  
"What is all of this?" he asked, sounding annoyed. "The Harry Potter one hour lightening bolt scar chew? The Boy Who Lived Snitch Catcher?" He held up a fake floppy hand.

"Patterned after that unfortunate moment when Gilderoy Lockhart removed your broken arm bones. Great for parties," said George raising his eyebrows and grinning. He pointed to a photograph of Harry in his Gryffindor Quidditch uniform getting his arm broken by a Bludger and then catching the Snitch.   
  
"Well, I guess not all of your Wheezes can be a Canary Cream. How are these selling?" Harry decided it was hard to be angry with the twins. They meant no harm.   
  
"Sales of the hands have been a disappointment, but the scar chew is quite popular." Fred and George were nudging each other and whispering.

Harry noticed a sign on the counter that read, "Back in twenty minutes." Holding it up to the twins, he asked, "Do I want to know why this is here?"

"It's a marketing technique," answered Fred, trying to look business like. "You tell people that they just missed meeting me?" Harry's question was more of a statement. He shook his head.

  
"And, today it will be true," said Ginny, laughing.

If it made her happy, Harry was all right with it. He smiled back at her. Fred and George high fived.

Just then, one of the patrons, a teenage girl with straight black hair, knocked over a big display of sneezing puffballs. A powdery cloud filled the hair.   
  
"Thanks for the tour. We'd best be going now," said Harry, holding his nose and steering Ginny toward the door. Over his shoulder, he said to the girl who had caused the crash, "Good morning, Tonks."

She laughed, "Wotcher, Harry. What gave me away?"

A disembodied voice answered. "He's either got some kind of sixth sense OR you're a big klutz, Tonks. Which would you prefer?"Everyone laughed. "Hello, Professor Moody," Harry said politely.

"Hello to you. Now that's the last time anyone talks to either of us. You will blow our cover. Tonks is going to quietly change her appearance periodically and I will remain unseen. You will all keep your wits about you and pay attention. Constant vigilance! Where are we headed first?" Moody lectured.

"Gringott's, then the shops," answered Harry. "Are you coming with us, Fred? George?""Have to mind the store, Harry. Our work is never done," answered Fred trying to look serious and not quite achieving the effect.   
  
Without thinking, Harry reached for Ginny's hand. "Shall we?" he said just as he had at the Burrow for weeks. The group stepped out into the bustling crowd of Diagon Alley.

As they headed toward Gringotts, Harry couldn't help but notice the number of people stopping on sidewalks and staring at their group. Some younger children were pointing. It had been such a long time since he had been to Diagon Alley. He did his best to ignore the attention.   
  
Hermione patted his arm and said, "We should have expected this, Harry. Have you been reading the Daily Prophet this summer? Gone are the days when you were the attention-craving lunatic who claimed he'd seen Voldemort. You are back to being everyone's hero. Rita Skeeter got her job back, and she has put out a whole series of articles about your heroic's at Hogwarts - complete with photographs."

"Sorry, Harry," said Ginny. "We should have thought of a disguise."

He laughed. "Maybe we could cruise back to Fred and George and lay in a supply of Canary Creams for the day. None of you would mind walking around the shops with a large canary, would you?" He refused to let the stares bother him. Ginny and Ron laughed.

Hermione began, "We could think of a better disgui..." before Ginny cut her off, "It was a joke, Hermione."Harry never shopped much as a child so he particularly enjoyed going around with his friends. After Gringotts, Ron and Harry dragged the girls into Quality Quidditch Supplies. Ginny wasn't too hard to convince, especially once Harry asked her to help him find a disguise.   
  
"Hold still, Harry. You said I could dress you up. I don't want to poke you in the eye." She'd found a pair of wizard sunglasses that changed color with the weather. In the August heat, they were purple. Giggling, she added a Chudley Cannons, orange hat and scarf that would be truly become uncomfortable as the day was already warm. Harry didn't mind. She was giggling and it had something to do with him. He could take them off later.

This was his chance to be generous with his money. He paid attention as his friends looked in the various shops and quietly bought gifts for everyone. For Ron, he purchased a Chudley Cannon's jersey that had been signed by this year's team. For Ginny, he bought a whole bunch of art supplies and a potion to make pictures move. Hermione's eyes lit up at Flourish and Blotts when they saw the latest edition of _Hogwarts, A History: Revised Edition_ so he purchased it before picking out his schoolbooks. Ron was busy listening to Hermione explain why they would need a copy of _Trends in Transfiguration: An Advanced Guide to Altering the Universe_ even though it wasn't on the booklist.   
  
Harry was looking through old books with Ginny. "Buying your books second hand, Potter? Of course, that is what I'd expect of the Weasleys," drawled Draco Malfoy, arrogant as ever. He stood sneering up at Harry, flanked by his usual goons, Crabbe and Goyle.

Harry responded evenly, "You need some new material, Draco, and maybe some new friends. Do you hang around here every summer in hopes of finding someone to harass?" To Ginny he said quietly, "How did he see through my disguise?"

"You're the one who ought to be looking for new friends, Potter. Still clinging to the Weasleys like they're the only people on the planet. And I see that you've finally given the Weaslet what she's always wanted - now that she's grown up," Draco continued, not noticing the tall figure of Ron looming behind him.   
  
Ginny snapped her book shut and said, "Are you learning impaired? Do you need another Bat-Bogey lesson?" To Harry she whispered, "You should put the hat and scarf back on."

Putting a hand on her arm and shaking his head, Harry stepped forward. He waved his hand as if to say, 'Don't bother, Ron.' Under his breath, he muttered something no one could hear.   
  
The group fell silent, then Crabbe and Goyle began shaking their leader saying, "What is it? What's wrong?" Draco was speechless. He was turning red in the face and mouthing something, but unable to make a sound.

Harry said to them, "You'd better get him out of here before something else happens."

Ron stepped aside to clear their way to the exit, clearly enjoying the sight of their retreating figures. Then he grinned at Harry. "Nice work. You'll have to show me how you managed that, mate."

"If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all. Was that the spell you used?" asked Hermione."Something like that, Hermione. Anyway, those are words to live by with those miserable Slytherins. When have they ever had anything nice to say? I just wish I'd thought of it before." They didn't see any more of the Slytherins for the rest of the day.   
  
At Madam Malkin's robe shop, Harry and Ron made their school robe purchases quickly. While the girls were still exclaiming over the dress robes, Harry asked Ron if he would buy Ginny the new robes she wanted and say it was a gift from her brother.   
  
Ron didn't quite hear him. "You want to buy me some dress robes?" he asked, looking confused."Yes, Ron, because fuchsia looks so good on you." Harry smacked his forehead like he was knocking on a door. "Not you, Ginny. You could tell her you used some of the money you've made doing all those home improvement projects for your Dad. Of course, I'll give you the Galleons to cover what she needs," suggested Harry while he watched Ginny look regretfully at a set of dark green robes that would look great on her.   
  
"OK," Ron agreed. "I'll do it if you let me pay for half of that Hogwarts book you bought Hermione and let me give it to her."

"You can just give it to her. That would be all right with me," answered Harry, relieved that Ron wasn't shocked at his suggestion that they buy Ginny some pretty clothes. Harry handed over the Galleons to Ron, then headed over to the gift counter to pretend to browse. He heard Ginny give Ron a little squeal and a giggle as she hugged him for being the "best brother."

Ron's ears turned red as Hermione gave him a calculating look. She shot the same look at Harry who was trying to look unconcerned. With a small smile she began to help Ginny try on clothes.   
  
When they were all done shopping, they stood in the street debating whether or not they should get ice cream at Florean's.   
  
"We could watch the crowd walk by," suggested Ron.

"You mean, you could have chocolate syrup on something," said Hermione.   
  
"We have a lot of packages. Maybe we've had enough," said Harry, looking at Ginny's tired face. He took her packages from her. "Let me get those, Gin," he said.

A gruff voice from the air said quietly, "Twenty minutes before the Floo Network to the Burrow closes down again." The four teenagers laughed. That settled it.

As they turned to go, they ran smack into two of their fellow Gryffindors coming out of the bookstore. Dean Thomas and Parvati Patil were so engrossed in conversation that they didn't see them at first. They seemed to be sharing a private joke. When Dean saw Ginny he gave her a broad smile.   
  
Ginny looked like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car as Dean enveloped her in a big hug. "Ginny!" he said. "What a great surprise!" Clearly, he was delighted to see her. He started firing questions at her.

Turning away quickly so no one would notice the stricken look on his face, Harry focused on resituating the many packages he was carrying. When he heard Parvati say hello to everyone, he looked up briefly and smiled what he hoped was a real smile. He'd spent the last month wrapped up in a dream world where no one was closer to Ginny than he was. Running into Ginny's boyfriend, his Gryffindor roommate, was a rude awakening.

Stealing a glance at Ginny's wide-eyed expression and Harry's white face, Ron saved the situation by interrupting. "We have to get going. See you all soon." He then dragged the whole group toward Fred and George's shop. The return to the Burrow was very quiet since Harry and Ginny were mostly staring at their shoes.   
  
A very relieved looking Arthur and Molly Weasley were waiting in the living room at the Burrow as the four teenagers landed quietly. Ron and Hermione were giving each other knowing glances while Harry and Ginny silently sorted out their packages.   
  
"We are so glad you returned safely, children. Hurry and wash up. We are having an early supper tonight so your father can join us," Molly said while brushing soot off of Ginny's shoulders.

"This can't wait until after we eat, Molly. Why don't you sit down, Harry? Ron, could you take his packages up to your room. There is something I need to speak with Harry about," Mr. Weasley said, his voice quiet, but firm.

His mind still reeling from running into Ginny's boyfriend, Harry sat numbly down on the couch. A dark, edgy expression came over his face as Harry put up his guard.   
  
Ginny sat down beside him with her chin held high. Harry felt the comfort of her presence. Whatever they told him, he'd tell her anyway. Her parents must have known that because they let her stay. Ron and Hermione lingered near the stairs so they could hear, too.

"First, Harry, we weren't going to bring you into this until absolutely necessary. After last spring, you deserve some time to rest and recuperate, but you should know. You have a right to know. Remus Lupin is missing. We don't believe he is dead. We have reason to believe he is caught up in something and unable to contact us. Anyway, we hope you can help us," Arthur said, looking sadly at Harry and his daughter.

He noticed Ginny's hand crept into Harry's as they both stared up at him. He reached for the large carved wooden box on the mantle and handed it to Harry. With his free hand Harry ran his fingers across the scene carved into the top of the wood. "What is it?" he asked.

"Remus Lupin left this box and a letter with Professor Dumbledore, instructing him to hold onto them for him. He planned to give them to you himself when he returned. We aren't sure what this box is. No one can open it. We've all tried - even Dumbledore," Mr. Weasley explained. "We think you may be able to and we hope it has a clue about what happened to Remus."

Harry looked up sharply, "I haven't heard from Professor Lupin all summer. He hasn't answered any of my letters or sent me anything. Why would he leave something like this with Dumbledore? Was he expecting me to be at Hogwarts?" This wasn't making much sense, but he had been longing to speak with Professor Lupin all summer. He knew the professor blamed him for what happened to Sirius. He wanted to apologize to him personally. Now he was missing, maybe dead?

"Try to open it, Harry." Ginny spoke softly at his elbow, leaning in for a good look at the carving, the awkwardness of running into Dean forgotten because of this new surprise. The two teens were back to their former closeness.

Harry flipped what looked like a latch and the box opened with a gentle click. Everyone held their breath as Harry slowly opened the box. Nothing happened.   
  
As they exhaled collectively, Mr. Weasley warned, "Don't touch anything inside there. It could be a Portkey. I think we should call Dumbledore."

"No need, Arthur. I am already here." Dumbledore stepped into the room. "Ah, I see Harry was able to open the box. Excellent. We want to find Remus Lupin as soon as possible. Unfortunately, that is not the business that brought me here this evening. Something has happened and I have come to ask Harry to accompany me to Hogwarts straight away. The matter is urgent, but you can first take the time to examine the contents of your box if you like, Harry."They all peered into the box. Four things appeared to be inside. One was a paperweight made out of a black stone carved in the shape of a phoenix. The next was a square velvet bag that looked like it held something circular. There was a slim book with some a drawing of a tree and some writing on the cover. Harry didn't recognize the language. The fourth item was a large red ruby. It was oval shaped and slightly larger than a golf ball.   
  
"What do you make of these things, Professor?" Harry asked.

"I do not know the significance of the contents of your box, Harry. If you bring it to Hogwarts with you, we can examine them more carefully," answered the Headmaster.

"Will you explain why you want me to go with you to Hogwarts? School doesn't start for a few more days," said Harry, keeping his voice even.Looking around the room at Harry's friends and adopted family, Dumbledore said, "There has been an attack on a friend of yours and her family. No one was killed, but your friend was brought to Hogwarts so Madam Pomfrey could look her over. She's asking for you."

"Who is?" Harry was stumped. He couldn't think of anyone who would ask for him.

Dumbledore had an encouraging smile as he answered, "Cho Chang."

Harry looked confused. He hadn't given Cho a thought since she sent that letter on his birthday. Remus Lupin was in trouble and Dumbledore wanted him to go hold Cho's hand?

Ginny broke the silence with, "Can we all come to Hogwarts, Professor?" She looked up at him hopefully.

His eyes twinkled as he answered gently, "Harry should probably come by himself." Noticing that Harry and Ginny's hands were entwined, he added, "It will only be a few days before you are all at the welcoming feast. What is your answer, Harry?""I'll come. Of course, I'll come. Give me a few minutes to pack and say goodbye," said Harry. The room came back to life as everyone now had something to do. Mrs. Weasley went to bring in the laundry so Harry could have his clothes. Hermione went to help her. Ron headed upstairs with all the packages.

"Ginny, will you help me with something," Harry said as he turned to follow Ron. Pulling her toward the stairs, he said, "I have something to give you."

Recovering herself, Ginny smiled and said, "I hope it's that giant ruby. What about it, Harry?"

He smiled at her, the joke breaking the tension. "No, I bought you some art supplies and stuff to give you later, but since I am leaving in a few minutes I won't have the chance." He pulled her toward him in the dark hallway by her room. Handing her the bag of supplies he gathered his courage and said, "The last month has meant something; been important to me. I'm so glad we've been able to talk. I don't know what to say, but I bought you some things I thought you'd like to use, just to say thank you." Harry knew he was rambling but he couldn't stop staring into her deep brown shining eyes. She was drawing him toward her. He raised his free hand to her stroke her hair. So soft. So beautiful.   
  
Ginny didn't know what to say so she broke his gaze and put her arms around him pulling him into a brief hug. "Thanks for the present. Good luck at Hogwarts, Harry," she whispered as she slipped away into her room and closed the door. She didn't come out again that evening. Hermione told her parents that she was all worn out from shopping and had fallen asleep. The truth was Ginny cried so hard after Harry left that she didn't want anyone to see her blotchy face.   
  
After dinner, Hermione quietly entered the room they shared. "Do you want to talk?" she asked the small form curled up in her bed."What good will it do? Everyone has always known exactly how I feel about Harry. I'm not very good at hiding it," Ginny sighed."I'm not so sure, Ginny. I think Harry thinks you just want to be friends, especially after running into Dean today. If you want to be more than friends, you might have to make the first move," said Hermione.   
  
Ginny sat up to look at her only close female friend. She'd made it sound so simple. "You don't know how hard it is to be someone's friend when you want to be something more. Oh, wait a minute. Who'd know better than you?" That made both girls laugh.

"Ron figured it out. Harry will, too," said Hermione reassuringly.

"Harry has so many other things to worry about, Hermione. Remind me. Where is he tonight?" Ginny said.

"Is that sarcasm coming from sweet little Ginny?" Hermione laughed. Ginny hated being referred to in those terms. She continued more seriously, "Whatever Harry has to face, you know he wants you with him and Ron and me. Being Harry's friend isn't always easy. Being more to Harry is going to have some unique problems, too. Does that bother you?"   
  
"What bothers me is Cho Chang demanding his presence. Since when does Harry have anything more to do with her? They haven't been together in months," Ginny answered. "OK, I'm also curious about the carved box and I'd love to know what happened to Professor Lupin, but mostly I'm bothered by Cho Chang and how pretty she is."

"I bet Harry is there right now wishing she had freckles and red hair. You have nothing to worry about with Cho. Harry hasn't mentioned her in months. I've seen the way he looks at you. Give yourself some credit. Now, what do you want to do about Dean Thomas?"

On that note the girls giggled and talked through the night. In a house full of guys, Ginny felt lucky to have a girl to talk to.

A/N: Thanks once again to Hollow Godric for beta-reading.

Thanks for reading!


	6. Home to Hogwarts

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks to all who reviewed!

Gryphonmistress: Thanks for your comments! I am trying to update quickly while I have some extra time. 

lord tartutus: Cho isn't meant for Harry. That's for sure. And the Changs aren't too happy in this chapter.

Wytil: Clever of you to pick up on Dean's companion! Once they are all back at Hogwart's, things become complicated. All those lovely teenage hormones. 

P.I.D: I agree. Ron's awesome. He may be more interested in Quidditch than homework, but he has his priorities straight. And he must be smart or he wouldn't be so great at Chess.

captuniv: Harry is coming into his powers without being completely aware of them. Remus will be found soon, but not in this chapter.

****

Chapter Six

Home to Hogwarts 

Harry took a Portkey to Dumbledore's office. Once there, Dumbledore sent his trunk and Hedwig's cage away with a wave of his hand. "They will be in your room when you are ready, Harry. Gryffindor tower is closed right now. I will show you to your private quarters later." 

Dumbledore's office looked just the same as it always did, except for the night last June when Harry had smashed everything in sight. The portraits were mostly sleeping. Phineas Nigellas' frame was empty. 

Harry was thankful that Dumbledore was able to repair the damage to his office. He was ashamed of his behavior that night. "I am so sorry for the night I broke the things in your office, Professor."

"No need to apologize, Harry. As you can see, order has been restored," Dumbledore answered. His eyes were twinkling. "We have a lot to catch up on, Harry, but your most urgent business is with the Changs. Cho is down in the infirmary. As I told you she has asked to see you. Before facing them you should know what happened.

The family was apparently at home enjoying a simple family dinner when Death Eaters surrounded them. The attack was completely unexpected. We aren't sure what prompted it. Miss Chang was the focus of the attack. They were attempting to kidnap her. Her brother Charles overheard one of the Death Eaters say that she must be taken alive. The comment was shouted when she was struck with the same curse Miss Granger was hit with last June. 

She survived because her brother Charles, who is quite a few years older, was able to deflect the main thrust of the curse. Happily, Miss Chang's brother and her parents were able to fend off the attackers and call for Aurors. Help arrived and Miss Chang was brought here because she is a Hogwarts student."

"Was she was targeted because of her friendship with me, Professor?" Harry wondered aloud.

Professor Dumbledore said softly, "We can't know that for sure. She says that she owled you a letter on your birthday. It was probably intercepted and read before you received it." He gave Harry some time to absorb this before saying. "Do you want to see them now?" 

Harry nodded in reply, struggling to keep his emotions in check as he followed Dumbledore to the infirmary. Fear, anger and guilt coursed through him as they walked in silence. He hadn't even thought about Cho's letter in a month. They were never that close. She was just a pretty girl he had a crush on from a distance. If this is what they would do to her, then what would they do to the people he really cared about like Ron or Hermione or Ginny. The thought of his friends being hurt terrified him.

The Changs surrounded Cho's bed in the infirmary. As Harry and Professor Dumbledore approached the bed, they parted to show Cho curled up in the bed looking very small. "Harry, you came," she called in a weak voice. Her family greeted Harry quietly and parted so he could step near her bed. 

"Cho, I'm glad you are able to talk. Are you all right?" he asked, looking at the array of potions on her bedside table. 

"Of course she's not all right," her brother Charles said with a derisive laugh. "She was almost killed!" 

Harry turned to look at the angry twenty-five year old. "I'm sorry. I just don't know what to say," Harry said. "I'm sorrier than I can say. What can I do to help?" 

"You can stay away from my sister for starts..." Her brother stopped when Mr. Chang put a hand on his shoulder. 

"You're not giving Harry a chance to speak. Take a breath. Let's take a walk and let Cho and Harry talk." Mr. Chang didn't look any happier than Cho's brother as he led the younger man away. Mrs. Chang followed them in shocked silence.

"I didn't make much of first impression on them. Did I?" Harry tried to joke with Cho. 

She was either too tired or not amused. "They blame you for the attack. We are a pure blood family, not usually a target for Death Eaters. Did you get my letter, Harry?" She looked up at him hopefully. 

He took her hand and said, "Thanks for sending it, Cho. Don't you think that under the circumstances, you should forget you ever knew me? Trouble follows me around. You deserve someone better. Someone who won't get you killed." 

She started to cry. I just have that effect on her,' thought Harry. Aloud he said, "Don't cry, Cho. You're going to be better off if we keep our distance. In the long run, you'll be happier." He patted her hand.

"It's so unfair. First Cedric dies and now you have to stay away, Harry. I keep losing people because of You-Know-Who," she choked out. 

Harry was stumped. He didn't know how to comfort her so he decided to just be honest. "I don't know what will happen with Voldemort, Cho. I won't be ruled by fear. It just makes sense to prepare for our futures, go to school. I'll do what I have to when the time comes. You can't be a part of that. You should be safe, go to school, be with friends, date someone who can make you happy. That's what you deserve, Cho." He was thinking about how little Cho really knew about him. He was sure that she wouldn't be so anxious to spend time with him if she knew how many dangerous situations he had faced in the last few years.

"What about you, Harry? What do you deserve?" she asked through her tears. 

"That is sweet of you, Cho, but don't worry about me. I'll find my way. I have lots of people to help me," he answered. 

"My parents want to take me out of Hogwarts. They think I won't be safe if I am anywhere near you."

"I'll speak with them. I'll promise to stay away. Maybe it will help. Anyway, I'll visit you this week. No one will know. We are the only people here. Your family couldn't mind about that. Maybe I better go now. Try not to worry." Harry leaned in as if to give her a kiss on her forehead, then thought better of it and just patted her hand. She looked so young and so sad. "I'll send your family back in. You're lucky to have them."

Cho watched Harry square his shoulders as he went out to meet her parents before closing her eyes. She could tell that he was only interested in being her friend. Being a pretty girl, she knew when boys were infatuated with her and she could tell Harry was over his crush. He'd said that he had lots of people to help him so maybe there was someone else. Too bad, he looks so tall and handsome,' she thought as she drifted off to sleep. 

Charles Chang greeted Harry on the other side of the infirmary door. Cho's parents had apparently left. Before Harry could begin his apology, Charles stepped forward and said, "I'm sorry I went off at you like that. I just can't stand to see her hurt. You may not have sent the actual curse, but knowing you is the reason it was sent. I want you to promise me that you will stay away from her."

Harry answered, "Cho and I have agreed to stay away from each other. I'll keep her company while she recovers the next few days, but once school starts I promise to keep my distance. I don't want to see her hurt either."

Charles gave a sigh of relief and extended his hand as though he never expected Harry to agree so easily. Harry shook his hand and said, "I've been a big target for Death Eaters all my life. I'm used to it. This is something that never should have happened to your family. I am so sorry. I'll do everything I can to see it never happens again."

Cho's father said as he rejoined them, "Cho said you'd say something noble like this, Harry. Maybe she is right about you, but that doesn't change anything. I made her mother go lie down. Charles will come to terms with the attack on our family. We just need time to heal. If you promise to stay away from Cho, we can let her stay at Hogwarts. This is the safest place for her if the war begins."

'If the war begins?' thought Harry. 'What does he think the attack on his family was?' Hoping to change the subject from his relationship with Cho, he asked, "Were any of you other than Cho hurt in the attack? How did you fend them off?" 

Charles gave a small smile as his father launched into the story of how brilliantly he had defended Cho. Clearly the family was proud of their son and his abilities. "She owes her life to you," said Harry, remembering saving Ginny all those years ago in the Chamber of Secrets. "That creates a really strong magical bond."

They were interrupted by Professor Dumbledore quietly clearing his throat. "Yes, Professor?" Harry inquired.

"I need to borrow Harry on another urgent matter. You can meet later, but we mustn't delay our other business any further, Harry," said Professor Dumbledore. "It may be a matter of life and death."

"What life and death matter are you talking about, Professor?" Harry asked as they walked away. 

"Have you eaten dinner, Harry?" Dumbledore asked in return.

Harry stopped walking. "Who is in danger? Professor Lupin?"

Dumbledore laughed. "We could go on asking each other questions all evening. I'll make you a deal. We'll go to your quarters and you can ask me anything you want while you eat your dinner."

"It's a life and death matter, but you think we should eat?" Harry asked, even though he was reassured by Dumbledore's laugh. Dumbledore answering questions will be a refreshing change,' he thought. Aloud he said, "Could we take a look at the contents of that box before too much longer? I thought it might have something to do with the Professor's disappearance."

"You read my mind, Harry," said Dumbledore.

"You probably mean that you read my mind, Professor," answered Harry, following Dumbledore down a fifth floor passage he had never seen before. To enter the passage they had to pass through a portrait of two teenagers, a boy and a girl, both dressed in satin and apparently tending a sheep. The passage itself looked like any other Hogwarts corridor. Paintings and suits of armor decorated it. Harry couldn't remember seeing this area on the Marauder's Map. I'll have to look this up when I get a chance.' he thought. 

After traveling up a circular flight of stairs, they entered what appeared to be living quarters richly decorated in Gryffindor colors. The door leading off to the left was open and Harry could see a four poster bed similar to the one he had in his dormitory room. The main room had a small sitting area with a low table, sofa and some overstuffed chairs surrounding a large fireplace. A small desk and some bookshelves lined the far wall near a window. Up a couple of little steps was an area with a small dining table surrounded by floor length windows.

The smell of food filled the air. Harry realized he was really starving. "Tuck in, Harry. I know you are hungry," said Professor Dumbledore, never one for speeches when there was food to be eaten. The table was covered with dishes that contained some of Harry's favorites: chicken and ham pie, mashed potatoes and treacle tart. 

For several minutes they both ate in silence looking out at the view. The floor length windows were actually doors leading to a small terrace overlooking the Forbidden Forest. We must be on the Gryffindor side of the castle or maybe just under Gryffindor tower somehow,' thought Harry. He could also see the Forbidden Forest from his dormitory window although this was a slightly different perspective. 

"You have quite a nice view from here. Don't you agree?" asked Professor Dumbledore. 

"There you go reading my thoughts again, Professor," answered Harry. "And I thought I was improving at Occlumency."

"I think you probably have improved at Occlumency. At least according to Professor Snape. How do you think the lessons went this summer?" asked Dumbledore.

Harry thought for a minute before answering. He knew Dumbledore trusted Snape, but Harry never could quite trust the man. "Professor Snape was willing to set aside his time to continue the lessons so I gave it my best effort, too. For the most part, the pains in my scar have gone. Whether or not that is due to the Occlumency lessons, I don't know. Is it possible that Voldemort has been blocking the connection between us himself?" asked Harry. 

"A diplomatic answer about Professor Snape - you seem to have grown up a bit this summer, Harry, in addition to growing taller. Do you still have visions or nightmares where you see Voldemort?" Dumbledore returned.

Harry laughed to himself. They seemed to answer each other's questions with another question. "I haven't had those sorts of nightmares since I went to the Burrow and even before, the visions weren't very specific - more of a general feeling or a sense of Voldemort's frustrations. If there had been anything clear, I would have contacted you. Shall we look more closely at the box?"

Dumbledore looked sadly at Harry and pulled something out of his pocket, "If you are finished eating, Harry, I'll get rid of the dishes."

"Let me, Professor," answered Harry, and with a wave of his hand the dishes were sent to the castle kitchens. 

Dumbledore's eyebrows went up in astonishment. "You have had a good summer, Harry. You've learned to focus your magic without your wand. I suspected you would develop the power eventually though most wizards who are capable enough don't develop those skills until they are much older. May I say, this is an interesting development. You may need some extra tutoring in Transfiguration this year." Dumbledore smiled. 

Remembering that Dumbledore used to teach Transfiguration, Harry smiled back at him. "So it isn't just Wishing Magic, Professor, like when I was younger and wanted something to happen? Or anger gone out of control, like when I blew up my Aunt?" Harry asked.

"Wishing Magic is indeed wandless, but Wandless Magic is something else. It requires a mature attitude because you must use your emotions to make it work. You can't just control or suppress your emotions. You have to channel your feelings into the magic. It is similar to conjuring a Patronus, where you focus on happiness as part of the spell. I'll explain more later when we begin your tutoring sessions." 

With a more serious expression, Dumbledore handed Harry the envelope he was holding. Pleased to hear that the Headmaster was willing to tutor him, he smiled. After barely looking at him last year, Dumbledore was willing to spend the time and effort to help him with his Wandless Magic skills. Things were changing for the better.

His expression changed to sadness when he looked at the writing on the envelope that he'd been handed. It was Lupin's handwriting. "We found this letter on Lupin's desk at Grimmauld Place. I have no idea whether he meant to send this to you or not. It is addressed to you, but it is entirely possible that it contains something he didn't intend you to see. Perhaps it will help us find out what happened to him."

Harry tore it open without saying anything.

Dear Harry, 

Sorry for not visiting you this summer, I needed some time to sort out my feelings. 

Words cannot express how sorry I am for not forcing Sirius to stay home that night. We probably all feel responsible in some way. I know I should blame Bellatrix Lestrange, but she's not around, so I blame myself. The others in the Order have been great. I know I shouldn't feel this way, but I do. 

Holding you back from following him through the veil is a memory I can't shake. He was my last remaining best friend. One of the few people in my life who ever accepted me just as I am without reservation or hesitation. 

Life goes on, but I want my life to count for something. Sirius left me in charge of his will. It will be read at Grimmauld Place following his memorial service. He wanted to keep things simple, but it has proven to be complicated. For obvious reasons, Sirius could never go to Gringotts to examine the contents of your parents' vault. By the terms of your parents' will, the vault was sealed when they both died. Only your guardian could enter, or you yourself when you come of age, so no one has been in there since you were a little baby. On Sirius' death, the job of guardian has passed to me so I was able to enter the vault. I have sent a letter and a carved wooden box that I found among your parents' things to Dumbledore to pass on to you. I couldn't open the box, but perhaps the letter explains. 

Please let me help any way that I can. I've decided to keep the other half of the double mirror that Sirius gave you with me at all times. Sirius included all the Marauders in the charm he put on the mirrors. Say my name into your half if you decide that you are ready to speak with me. 

See you soon,

Remus Lupin

Harry looked up confused, "Nothing in here explains why the Professor has disappeared, or where he may have gone. Did he explain himself to you?" Harry looked at the older wizard, thinking, Now is the time for Dumbledore to trust me. Keeping information from me last year caused more harm than good.'

"It's complicated, Harry. Remus wasn't himself this summer. He spent most of his time brooding at Grimmauld Place. He wasn't happy about your return to the Dursleys. I convinced him that he should go to Gringotts to examine your parents' vault, since he was to be your new guardian. When he brought out the letter and the box, I recognized the scene carved on the top immediately. It seemed a matter of some urgency to send him on a mission to discover some information about the box before giving it to you. He left the box and letter for safekeeping. It should have been a fairly short mission. He hasn't returned or checked in with anyone. What is this about a double mirror?"

Harry frowned, "It's one more thing to feel guilty about. Sirius gave me a package when I was leaving Grimmauld Place last Christmas. He said that Mrs. Weasley wouldn't like it, but he wanted me to be able to contact him if I needed him. I put it away without opening it because I was determined not to put Sirius in danger or get him caught by the ministry. When I was packing last June I saw it. I realized that I could have just used the mirror to make sure Sirius was home. Kreacher's lies wouldn't have mattered, shouldn't have mattered. The whole situation could have been avoided if I hadn't been so stupid. I threw the mirror and it shattered. I haven't tried to repair the pieces, but I kept them."

"Seems like a good place to start," replied Dumbledore quietly. 

Harry went in the bedroom and returned after a few minutes with brown paper loosely wrapped in his hands. "I hope we aren't missing any pieces," he said before waving his hand and saying, "_Reparo!_"

The mirror magically reappeared. Both of them breathed a sigh of relief. "Now for the real test," said Harry, holding the mirror to his face and saying very clearly, "Remus Lupin."

Nothing happened for a moment. Then the two men began to make out the faint, dark outline of Professor Lupin's face. "Professor!" said Harry with delight. "I can barely see you. Are you all right? Can you see us?" 

"Harry is that you? And Dumbledore? What a relief. I thought I was imagining things when I heard your voice coming from my pocket. I'd forgotten all about the mirror," said Remus, sounding relieved. 

"Where are you, may I ask?" said Dumbledore.

"I'm shut inside a dark cave. There is just a small beam of light coming from somewhere up above. I found the area you sent me to look for, Professor. It was just as you described. But, it took a long time to find the entrance. It was on the northern side of the hill, not the southern side. The first room I found was interesting. There was a sort of box made out of stone and some old weapons and jars stored there. I found another room leading off the main room. Just as I began to explore the interior, it felt like a great wind had come up and it blew me against the wall. I think I passed out for a while. Anyway, I can't find my wand. Either it is too dark in here or my wand was blown away somehow. The entrance is gone. The room I'm in doesn't appear to have any openings. I can't say how many days I have been here. Maybe two or three. Happily I had some food and Wolfsbane Potion in my rucksack or I would be in serious trouble," Remus explained.

"You're in a cave with no exit, no wand and no light. Sounds serious to me," said Harry. Without a wand, Remus couldn't make his exit. He couldn't Apparate away or create a door. "Where is this cave? I'll come get you." He had no idea how he would come get him, but being Harry, he would try anyway. 

Dumbledore responded, "I know where the cave is, Harry. It's near Carmarthen, Wales. The carving on your box shows the scene. I'll see if Kingsley and Tonks are available, Remus. They have been searching the area for you. Harry will go along, as I'm guessing his is the only voice that can activate the double mirror. Is there anything else we should know? Did you encounter anyone on your trip? Were you followed?"

"I made the usual evasive maneuvers to escape anyone who might be following me so I'm fairly certain that I have maintained the secrecy that we discussed. If Harry is with you, has he had a chance to look at the box? Did it open for him? Did you read the letter, Harry?" he asked. 

Harry had forgotten about the box. Curious as he was, he was more worried about Professor Lupin than anything else. "One mystery at a time, Professor. Let's get you out of there first."

Dumbledore was doing something over by the fireplace. Soon Kingsley Shacklebolt's head appeared. Harry couldn't hear their conversation, but he assumed Dumbledore was arranging the rescue party. When he returned to Harry's side he said, "The rest of our discussion must wait for the morning, Harry. Mr. Shacklebolt and Miss Tonks are waiting for you. They have actually been searching that area since Remus first went missing. You can join their search. 

I suggest that you put on warmer clothing, some sturdy shoes and some warm socks. You won't be going near any towns so you shouldn't have to worry about a disguise. Why not take your invisibility cloak just in case? Ah..." exclaimed Dumbledore as his phoenix, Fawkes, appeared on the terrace. "I think it's time."

Thrilled that Dumbledore hadn't suggested that he stay safely behind Hogwarts' walls, Harry hurried to his trunk to get ready. He folded his invisibility cloak and put it in his small rucksack. Dumbledore was speaking quietly to Fawkes as Harry re-entered the room. "Fawkes will take you to Wales, Harry. It will be the fastest and safest way for you to travel. The two of you will fly over the Forbidden Forest and then Apparate to Wales."

"Why can't Fawkes Apparate from here, Professor?" He remembered Fawkes disappearing with a flash of fire from Dumbledore's office last spring.

Dumbledore didn't explain. The headmaster was struck by how much Harry had matured over the summer. The young man stood there calmly asking intelligent questions when he must be very worried about Professor Lupin. His self-control was impressive. "The others will meet you on the northern side of the hill shown in this picture." 

Harry looked at the carving on the box, trying to memorize the scenery quickly in case it would help later on. He told himself that panicking would not help Professor Lupin. He concentrated on steadying his heartbeat. It was pulsing wildly. Feeling calm again, he looked into the Headmaster's twinkling eyes and said quietly, "Thanks." Grabbing Fawkes' tail, he and the bird took flight.

Watching the phoenix take flight with Harry in tow, Dumbledore laughed softly to himself. He had a special way of communicating with the bird that had been his companion for all these years. He knew something he couldn't tell Harry. Fawkes likes to have his fun. The bird could have easily apparated with Harry, but he had taken a liking to the young wizard and thought flying for a bit would be something of a diversion.

A/N: Thanks once again to Hollow Godric for all his help. His encyclopedic knowledge of J.K. Rowling's work is truly amazing!


	7. Myrddin's Den

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks to everyone for reading and reviewing!

Wytil: Hello again! Thanks for your review. 

Lord Nomad: Glad you like the story so far. You are such a good guesser! Harry hasn't begun to figure out how his powers have changed and Lupin is trapped in a placewell maybe I should just let you read about it in the next chapter. Thanks for your review.

sillypaulie: Thanks! I am trying to update soon.

PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: Thanks for comments! There will be more about Remus in the next few chapters. 

****

Chapter Seven

Myrddin's Den

In the fading light of a Welsh sunset, Fawkes and Harry reappeared in a very small clearing surrounded by a densely wooded area. They seemed to be alone. Harry let go of the phoenix's tail. Fawkes settled onto Harry's shoulder and gave a quiet trill. They began to hear noises growing louder as Tonks and Kingsley crashed through the underbrush. 

"Wotcher, Tonks?" said Harry, nodding to Kingsley Shacklebolt. "Glad you could make it." 

"We should move toward the north and speak as little as possible," was the reply from Kingsley. Tonks nodded in return. Kingsley held out his wand and said, "_Point me!_" The group moved as silently as possible in that direction. As they came onto a small rise, Harry recognized the hillside scene from the box carving. 

Still traveling north as darkness began to fall, they were startled by a couple of birds chasing each other out of a bush. Harry's eyes were drawn to something he thought he saw through the leaves. Brushing back a branch, Harry saw what appeared to be an old stone statue pushed into the side of the hill. The statue was of two birds with a basin in front of them as though it was once a fountain or a birdbath. The basin was filled with leaves and debris. Motioning to the others, they moved aside some more branches revealing what appeared to be a small opening in the hillside. It was the entrance to a cave. 

Harry pulled out his mirror and said, "Remus Lupin." His old professor's face appeared in the mirror, looking a little tense. "We think we may be near the entrance. Was there a statue of two birds next to it?" Harry asked.

Remus looked relieved. "Yes, follow the entrance for about ten feet and turn right. You should see a large cavernous room. Let's keep the mirror going while you walk."

"Sounds good," answered Harry. "We should be fairly quiet though," he added looking at Kingsley. Neither Auror had said anything while he spoke with Remus. Harry wondered briefly if Kingsley had to put Tonks under a spell to get her to be this quiet, then decided that she was just well trained. 

Kingsley went first into the dark entrance, holding up his lit wand so they could see. Harry went next, followed by Tonks. Fawkes stayed on Harry's shoulder. The interior was narrow and low ceilinged. They had to walk single file. Just as Remus had described, the entrance corridor gave way toward the right and let out into a large cavernous area. From the entrance, it seemed as large as the Great Hall at Hogwarts only dark, cold and damp. 

As Harry walked into the room, torches lit all around the walls. The room seemed to fill with a sweet smell to replace the dankness he had noticed before. The air seemed warmer and filled with golden light. The stone walls glittered. Fawkes flew around the room singing a pretty note. All three rescuers breathed easier. Harry said into the mirror, "Wow! You never said this was such a nice cave, Professor Lupin." Noticing that Remus was still in darkness, he added, "Why aren't the torches working in your cave? Where is the entrance so we can get you out of there?"

"Torches? What torches, Harry? There weren't any torches when I came through the main cave. It was as dark as this one. Are you sure you are in the right place? Is there a large stone box in the center of the room? Are there any artifacts there, like weapons or pottery?" Remus sounded worried. 

"Maybe you just arrived during the day and the torches only work at night," suggested Kingsley. "The stone box is here as are the weapons and the pottery. The entrance was just the way you described. I think this is the place. Now where are you?" 

"On the far side of the door was a suit of armor that was lying on the ground. I was looking at that when I noticed a place in the cave wall where the walls appeared to overlap creating a small opening. When I walked through, a great wind came up and somehow the opening disappeared. Is there an opening from your side?" Remus asked. Kingsley and Tonks were already checking. 

Harry was going to follow them, but when he neared the stone box, it opened noiselessly. Kingsley and Tonks had found the suit of armor and pointed at the opening. "Harry, we found it," Tonks called. 

"Coming!" he answered, still trying to peer into the dark interior of the box. 

"Whoa..." exclaimed Tonks. "Check it out, Kingsley. That wasn't open before. Did you open it, Harry?" Kingsley didn't look too happy at the thought of Harry poking around.

"I swear I never touched it. The lid just lifted as I walked by. Let's leave it for now and find the Professor," Harry said, sounding concerned. He moved toward the suit of armor. Fawkes landed on his shoulder as he joined the Aurors. Looking around he said, "Do you see the opening he was talking about? There!" He pointed to what did appear to be two walls of the cave overlapping. 

At almost the same time, Tonks suggested, "Maybe we should take a torch?" and Kingsley said, "Wands ready!"

The three walked slowly toward the opening with Harry and Fawkes in the lead. As Harry walked through, the torches sprung to life revealing a second, smaller cave. This one was completely empty except for Professor Lupin, who was blinking at the light and very glad to see them. Harry gave a shout in greeting and handed him his wand. He'd found it on the ground in the main cave.

"Let's get out of here before that wind starts!" Remus said, gathering his rucksack and brushing off his robes. Fawkes sounded his agreement.

The group stayed close enough to touch each other as they moved back into the larger room. Remus sighed in relief as they walked toward the exit. "Why did you come here in the first place, Professor? What were you looking for?" asked Harry. His outstretched hand held a sandwich. "I thought you might be hungry so I brought you something." 

Remus took it thinking, That looks too fresh for a sandwich that was in Harry's pocket Do I want a sandwich that has been in Harry's pocket?' Hunger won out and he took the food gratefully. 

"There's more where that came from," Harry said. "Shall we look into that stone thing now? Or do you all think we should just get out of here while we can?" he asked.

Still busy with his sandwich, Remus said, "How did you get that open? I tried everything I could think of before I gave up. I was beginning to think it was a solid block of stone." 

"Do you think it is someone's grave? Someone who was really little's grave?" suggested Tonks, her eyes widening with curiosity. 

The four of them leaned over the box looking into its dark depths, their faces a mix of wonder and fear. Fawkes took off around the room again trilling, bolstering the group's courage to look into the mysterious hold. 

"It's a sword," said Harry. The sword appearing while Fawkes was singing reminded him of the Chamber of Secrets which of course reminded him of Ginny. He wished she was here. He couldn't wait to tell her about this adventure. That brought him out of his musings. This adventure could still end badly. "Should we lift it out?" he asked the others. 

Kingsley reached for the sword then collapsed with a scream. "Ow...*&^%#*," he swore. 

"You try, Harry," said Tonks. 

"Thanks, Tonks. I like you, too," answered Harry. 

"No, think about it. The box opened for you, maybe you can lift the sword." She sounded sincere. 

"This is real life, Tonks, not a Disney movie. And this sword isn't stuck in the stone so that we need the young and pure at heart. Kingsley's in pain. NO THANKS!" Harry answered. 

"Disney movie?" said Remus, looking confused. "What's the worst that could happen, Harry. Kingsley's over it now, aren't you? Why not give it a try?" 

Harry looked at Kingsley who was still rubbing his hand, but otherwise was just fine. He nodded his agreement. With a grim face preparing to be zapped, Harry reached for the sword. As he lifted the hilt, a shower of sparks flew out the end and a glow encompassed both the sword and Harry. Harry felt a surge of warmth and power flow through him. For a full minute the group looked in awe at Harry holding the sword. No one knew what to say. 

Harry broke the silence with, "Can I keep this?" They all laughed. Fawkes returned to his shoulder. "Scratch that question. I am keeping it. If you try to stop me, my sword will zap you." Harry grinned and picked up the scabbard as well.

A cold wind blew from the entrance, making the torch light flicker. "We better get going," said Kingsley, looking around suspiciously. "Meet you back at Hogwarts. You first, Harry."

No clue as to what Kingsley expected him to do, Harry started to ask. "Wha" was all he got out before Fawkes Disapparated with him in tow. They were suddenly flying over the Forbidden Forest toward Hogwarts, the phoenix's strong talons gripping Harry's robe. The forest was dark, but he could see the lights of the castle in the distance. 'This must be what hang-gliding is like,' Harry thought as he relaxed into Fawkes' grip. This was fun. The castle grew larger and larger until Fawkes set him down gently at the front entrance. 

Harry walked through the front doors with Fawkes on his shoulder. Professor Dumbledore greeted them. "Ah, there you are," he said as Fawkes left Harry for the Headmaster. "Was your trip a success?" he asked, even though he seemed to know the answer. 

"I think so. Fawkes took me away so quickly that I'm not sure the others made it out of the cave." Harry wished he had stayed until everyone Apparated away. "Harry Potter!" His double mirror was calling. 

"Remus Lupin!" Harry answered, looking into the mirror. 

"We're down by the Hogwart's front gate. We should have brought a special Portkey, but we didn't so we had to Apparate. Could we meet in Dumbledore's office? Or is it too late." Harry wasn't even a little bit tired. He looked questioningly at the Headmaster. 

"By all means, let's meet in my office to hear about your adventure," he answered, his eyes twinkling.

"Did you hear that? See you in a few minutes."

"Let's wait for the others here," said Professor Dumbledore. "Can you tell me about your sword? Where did it come from?" Harry told him all about finding the sword within the stone box, how it zapped Kingsley, but not Harry. 

The others arrived and moved up to the Headmaster's office. Harry was extremely relieved everyone was unharmed by the night's adventure. He was more nervous than he thought about seeing Professor Lupin. Suddenly he was glad there was a crowd, postponing the time he would see him alone.

"What do you make of it, Headmaster? Do you want to hold it?" he asked, grinning, as they settled into the chairs.

Ignoring Harry's challenge to touch the sword, Dumbledore said, "Professor McGonagall will be back tomorrow morning. She can probably help us figure out some things about your sword." 

Kingsley Shacklebolt gave the report of the evening's activities. It seems that when Harry and Fawkes left the torches went out and someone or something began to enter the cave. The group had Apparated away just as the light they were carrying had begun to illuminate the scene. He wasn't sure whether or not they had been seen. "Really we rescued Remus with some ease considering. We just walked in and walked out with him. The question is why were we able to do that?" 

Tonks asked, "Then someone shows up just as we were leaving." Turning to Shacklebolt, she said, "I told you that I thought we were being followed."

He answered, "Or was this some kind of trap? If it was a trap, were we smart to let Harry take away that sword? Maybe it should be checked out, or at least taken somewhere for safekeeping. What do you make of it, Albus?"

"I'm not sure, Kingsley. I do not believe that the arrival of this unknown party was a part of a trap. Remus has been there for days. They would have sprung a trap in time to actually catch you there. In any case, I wouldn't have put Harry in danger if I had known someone else had an interest in the area. It is curious that the torches lit when he arrived and went out when he left, but there could be any number of explanations for it."

If Dumbledore thought it was a mystery, then it was really a mystery. "Do you have a theory about the sword?" Harry asked, hoping that no one would suggest taking the sword away from him again. 

"Your new sword is indeed a puzzle, Harry. I am suspicious. However, I think it more likely that someone arrived looking for something within the cave. Since they brought light with them, it is doubtful that it was an animal seeking shelter. Very likely, your sword was their target. In which case, it is fortunate you arrived there first," Dumbledore answered.

"Is the sword what you were hoping I would find?" Remus asked. 

Ignoring his question, Dumbledore said, "Now, I would like you to check in with Madam Pomfrey for the night, Remus. You have been through a bit of an ordeal. While you look fit, it won't hurt to get a good rest before we examine these events further. And Harry, you may of course keep your new sword with you, but I caution you against using it for anything before we inspect it more closely."

'What if Nearly Headless Nick challenges me to a duel? Or Sir Cadogan?' Harry thought, relishing the idea of swordfighting with someone. It was unlikely he would ever actually use it in a real sword fight. 'Maybe, someday' He put the sword in its scabbard with a sigh. 

Noticing that the Headmaster had conveniently not answered Remus' question, Harry persisted. "What were you hoping that Professor Lupin would find in that cave? You said you recognized its location based on the carving on the box. How? Is that cave famous for something? I can't sleep unless I have some answers." He wasn't planning on being just a tool in Dumbledore's schemes. Without a full and complete explanation, he wasn't going anywhere. 

Seeing that Harry wasn't going to be thrown off the track, Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. His lips curved into a small smile at Harry's persistence and he said, "Unless I am very much mistaken, that cave is Myrddin's Den, the historical site where Myrddin himself is believed to have spent much of his life." Kingsley and Tonks looked shocked. Harry was a little confused. Dumbledore continued, "Myrddin is supposed to have been born in the area. Legend has it that he built a refuge in the hills where he would retreat from life and enjoy the Welsh landscape. It is referred to as Myrddin's Den."

Harry still looked blankly at the Headmaster. "Honestly, what does Professor Binn's teach in his History of Magic courses?" asked Remus. "Myrddin is the Old Welsh pronunciation of Merlin. The cave must have belonged to Merlin, which raises the question of the sword. Is it Merlin's sword? What does this have to do with Harry?"

Since Harry was still staring, taking all of this in, Dumbledore answered, "The real Myrddin lived so long ago that it is difficult to know some of the circumstances. But his name was Merlin Emrys, not Merlin Potter so any kind of genealogical connection is doubtful." Looking at Tonks and Kingsley he said, "I would hope that no rumors surface suggesting that such a connection exists. It could cause problems." 

Putting his hand on Harry's shoulder, he began walking toward the door, "Will that help you sleep, Harry? We can talk again tomorrow."

A/N: Thanks to Hollow Godric, who knows a whole lot about writing, for beta reading this story! I'm learning. 

Well? Tell me what you think!


	8. The Burrow Under Fire

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N 

Wytil: The Torch is still a mystery. What is it? How can they get it? How can they use it? It's going to take a while to find out, but there will be some more clues coming soon.

Kit: Thanks for reviewing. I'll try to keep updating quickly.

EmeralDream 1: Thanks for your comments. There's some drama unfolding but when September 1st rolls around all the Hogwarts characters will get back into the story.

Chapter Eight

Burrow Under Fire

__

They held hands as they walked near the pond at the Burrow. The sun was shining. Somehow the water was very still yet a small cool breeze rippled Ginny's long beautiful hair and blew her white sundress closer to her shapely curves. Harry carried his new sword in his other hand and she was admiring it. She looked up into his eyes and leaned in...

The sunlight suddenly shone so brightly in Harry's eyes that he couldn't stay sleeping. Two bright green eyes were staring at him as he finally gave up and opened his. He was back in the four poster guestroom at Hogwarts. "Good morning, Harry Potter, sir," said Dobby happily. He threw the rest of Harry's curtains back to let in even more sunlight. It must be late,' thought Harry. 

Looking at the small elf who was so happily moving around his room, Harry said, "What brings you here, Dobby? Shouldn't you be on your summer vacation or something? School hasn't started yet." 

"Harry Potter is joking with Dobby. Why would Dobby want to be away from work, especially when he has been asked to look after you, sir? What an honor!"

"Who asked you to look after me, Dobby?" Harry wondered. "Did you see my new sword?"

"Headmaster asked Dobby 'specially to look after Harry Potter. Is that your sword? It stung when I tried to clean it," answered Dobby.

"I'll clean it myself. The scabbard especially needs some shining. I'm glad you'll be here, Dobby. Thanks for looking after me. Could you find a school owl to take this to the Burrow?" He held out the letter he had written to his friends the night before. Too excited to sleep, he wrote a letter addressed to Ron, Hermione and Ginny. He figured Dean couldn't get too upset about him sending a letter to Ginny if it was addressed to her brother and another friend, too. He had been careful not to include anything about the cave or the sword, just hinted that he had uncovered something interesting that he couldn't wait to share with them.

"You're most welcome, sir. I am honored." Dobby looked very pleased as he disappeared. 

Harry headed off to the showers collecting the fresh clothes that Dobby had laid out for him. The bathroom was an en suite and beautiful. Not as large as the prefect's bathroom, but spacious. Harry took extra time under the showerhead thinking how nice it was to have time to himself. So much had happened in the last couple of days. There were so many things he wanted to figure out. 

When he came out of the bedroom, there was a breakfast tray on the table near the terrace with a note from Dumbledore asking him to join him as soon as he was ready. "...and bring your new sword," the note said. 

Harry was excited about the sword. The sparks and glow and the feeling of power that surged through him was like what happened when he first received his wand only stronger. Dumbledore would know what to make of it. He decided he would bring the sword and the box with the carving. It couldn't be a coincidence that the scene carved on the box depicted the area where they found the cave. The sword and box must be related. He wanted a better explanation than just it might have something to do with Merlin. What did Merlin have to do with the Potters?

As he approached Dumbledore's office, Harry realized he did not know the current password. Last night he had sailed through with the Headmaster. He started listing wizard candies, then switched to Muggle sweets, finally getting the gargoyle to move by saying, "Maltesers." He couldn't imagine Dumbledore liking those, but it had worked so he moved on toward the Headmaster's office. He could hear voices as he knocked on the office door. 

He heard Professor Moody say, "It's Potter" before Tonks even opened the door for him. Professor Snape wasn't there, but Harry was greeted by many of the Order of the Phoenix, most of whom he knew. 

"Is this a good time, Professor Dumbledore? I can come back later," Harry offered. He knew they wouldn't want him to intrude on the Order's business.

"Please, come in and stay, Harry. We've all been waiting for you. Many of us are curious to see the new sword you have acquired," Dumbledore said, while motioning Harry to a seat near the fireplace next to Remus Lupin. He took the box that Harry had brought and said so quietly that only Harry could hear, "Why don't we save this for later?" Harry nodded his response.

"Morning, Professor Lupin. Did you get some good rest?" Harry asked. He looked pretty good considering he'd spent the last couple of nights in a cave and it was only a couple of days before the full moon. 

As Harry sat down, the room quieted. Everyone seemed to be looking at him expectantly. He looked up at Professor Dumbledore who seemed amused. His eyes twinkling, he said, "Harry, would you care to show us your sword?"

Harry smiled. His new sword was cool. He held it out for everyone to see, then laid it on the table. The hilt was beautifully worked. Even though it fit Harry's hand perfectly and comfortably, it was covered with Celtic designs. On one side an elongated bird that could be a phoenix faced a snake. The snake's body and the bird's tail stretched out to become tendrils that were entwined in an elaborate Celtic knot. On the opposite side, a winged lion and a dragon faced each other, their hind legs elongated and twisted into a similar design. 

Maybe the symbols represented something significant. Maybe they were just meant to be decoration. "Do you know what the symbols mean, Professor?" asked Harry. 

"Minerva is the real expert here. What do you think, are they significant? Can they help us discover the origin of this fine sword?" Dumbledore deferred to her with a twinkle in his eye. Harry suspected that Dumbledore knew all about his sword, but wanted to give Professor McGonagall the chance to explain part of it.

She reached out her hand to touch the sword, but Kingsley grabbed her hand and stopped her. "Right. Thanks for reminding me, Kingsley. I'll point instead. This is several centuries old. Difficult to really say how old since it is clearly a magical object. The symbols could have a different meaning today. We think of a serpent as a symbol of dark magic, but in ancient times a snake could have meant wisdom, cunning and reincarnation. Both the snake and the phoenix were symbols used to represent the cycle of life: life, death and rebirth. Both are powerful signs.

The winged lion is a Griffin, a powerful magical creature that is virtually unconquerable. A dragon is the same, difficult to overcome, full of magical power. These are both powerful signs signifying strength and invincibility. 

As to whether or not these are symbols for decoration or they have some greater importance, I cannot say." She finished speaking and looked at Dumbledore. "Albus?" she said. She seemed to be asking him to comment.

"Thank you for your assessment, Minerva. I have nothing to add. Except to suggest that Harry start fencing and sword fighting lessons this year. We don't usually teach that subject, but I would like to arrange a private tutor, if Harry and Professor Lupin agree." Dumbledore's eyes still had that twinkle. 

Teenager and new guardian looked at each other as if to say, 'that's right, we should both be consulted.' Remus raised his eyebrows questioningly. Harry nodded his reply. "I think that would be a good idea," Remus said. "Where could we find such a tutor?"

"We have one here. I anticipated your response," answered Dumbledore, indicating the figure of a young man who was on the edge of the group leaning against a wall. He was not very tall, probably in his late twenties. His long black hair was pulled back in a ponytail. He wore a black, short sleeved shirt and black pants - no robe. "Allow me to introduce Rhys Powell. He is a former Hogwarts student and a master swordsman. While he lives in Wales, he is willing to commute to Hogwarts on a part time basis to tutor Harry." 

The young man stepped forward and exchanged pleasantries with Harry and Remus. Rhys Powell seemed like a nice person, about the same age as Bill Weasley. 

Harry was struck by how awkward and formal Professor Lupin was toward him. He hadn't noticed it last night, but they had been in a special situation. He was glad for the presence of the crowd and Professor Dumbledore. All summer, he had hoped to talk with his old Defense Professor, Sirius' best friend. Now he was glad to have a little more time to prepare before he would have to face him alone. 

Everyone else broke into small groups to talk or gathered around the sword to take a closer look. The meeting in Dumbledore's office seemed to have reached a conclusion. People began to leave.

***

The early morning sky was on fire over the Burrow. Clouds of brilliant red gathered on the eastern horizon promising a storm later in the day. Ginny was the only one up. Her parents must have risen even earlier because they had already gone for the day. She was sitting in the kitchen drinking a cup of tea and daydreaming about walking around the pond with Harry. 

Only a few days ago, they had been walking down to swim, holding hands and talking. It had seemed like nothing could intrude on their world. Harry was telling her about the time he turned his teacher's hair blue. He'd been debating whether or not the twins lip gloss had turned her hair that exact shade of blue on the day he'd arrived. 

One moment they were laughing. The next moment, they had stopped walking without realizing it. Harry was smiling and looking deeply into her eyes. He had such amazing green eyes. She felt like they were pulling her toward him. Somehow he reached up and held her cheek, stroking her lower lip with his thumb as though to test how soft it was. Just then a screech interrupted them and they both looked up. Must have been a bird or something. Harry dropped his hand and they walked on as though nothing had happened. Did he almost kiss her? She'd never know. 

'After the way Dean greeted me in Diagon Alley, he must think we are a couple. Are we? I haven't heard from Dean since July. I couldn't talk to Harry before he left. Everything went so quickly. One minute Harry was here and the next he was gone. And Cho! Why had she suddenly reappeared on the scene? Were they back together? Is that why Harry never kissed me? He seemed like he wanted to.' It was all too confusing.

Ron came stumbling in looking for food. Poor boy, he was a little helpless in the kitchen, especially for someone with an appetite like his. Ginny smiled at him fondly. "I'll make you some bacon and eggs if you like." 

"Thanks, Ginny, how long have you been up?" Ron asked as he took her place at the table. "Couldn't you sleep?" She looked pale and tired.

"I'm worried about Harry," she said as though that explained everything. "Is that a Hogwarts' Owl?" A large brown school owl landed on the counter. 

"Sure enough, it's a letter from Harry," Ron said comfortingly to let her know he understood how she was feeling. "He's probably worried about you."

Ginny rolled her eyes then turned toward her brother and looked at the letter he held. "It's addressed to you," she said, sounding disappointed. 

"It's addressed to all of us - even Hermione," answered Ron defensively. 

"Even Hermione," mimicked Hermione as she made her morning entrance. "Is that 'even Hermione' as in just' Hermione or 'even Hermione' as in Hurray, Hermione is included." Her voice held a trace of sarcasm, but she didn't really seem upset. A week ago she would have started a fight over this kind of comment. Now that Ron had declared his feelings for her, she wasn't as inclined to be insecure. 

Ron looked worried anyway. "I'm sure I'm always in the Hurray, Hermione is included' camp. How about a good morning, beautiful, instead?" 

"Oh, you're getting better," she said running her hand across the back of his broad shoulders as she passed his chair and sat down.

Ginny groaned inwardly. Flirting Ron and Hermione wasn't that much better than arguing Ron and Hermione. Maybe she just had to get used to it. Handing Hermione a cup of tea, she said, "Well, open the letter, Ron. What if it's urgent? What if he needs our help?" She couldn't help panicking a little bit. Harry wasn't there to calm her down.

Ron and Hermione turned their heads in unison to level incredulous stares at Ginny, but neither said anything. Ron turned his attention back to the letter. He read it quickly and passed it over to Ginny. "He's fine. Sounds like he's run into some excitement. But more than anything, it sounds to me like he can't wait to see you." 

As she quickly scanned Harry's writing, she said, "He wrote the letter to all of us, Ron. Harry and I are just...we are..." Ginny struggled to find the end of that sentence. Ron and Hermione exchanged raised eyebrow looks, but again neither said anything. Ginny turned back to the bacon and eggs. What are we?' She thought. I know what Harry is. He's wonderful. I know that I want to be with him. If he just wants to be my friend, then I have to accept that. If Harry gets the idea that I want more than that, he will distance himself because he won't want to hurt me. Being friends is good. Friends are important.' 

Aloud she said, "You both know that Cho is the only girl Harry has ever fancied. She's the only one he's ever talked about. Right? We can't count Parvati Patil because she was his second choice for the Yule Ball and that was a long time ago. Now Cho's hurt and he has to help her. Harry has a lot to deal with in his life. The Dursleys, Voldemort." She brought two plates to the table filled with breakfast food and placed them in front of her brother and her best friend. They both gave her understanding looks. 

Their sympathy only made her feel exposed, as though they read all of her thoughts and feelings. They think I'm a fool.' She couldn't take any more of their pity, and she couldn't pretend for one more second that she didn't love him. She raised her chin. "Harry needs all three of us to be his friend now. Whatever comes, good or bad, he is going to need his friends more than ever." With that pronouncement, she turned and fled outside.

A moment later, a loud explosion rocked the Burrow. 

A/N: Thanks for beta-reading, Hollow Godric!

Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	9. Family

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter Nine

Family

The Headmaster's office emptied out until only Harry, Remus and Dumbledore remained. The carved box sat on a little table by the window. Harry turned to Dumbledore and said, "Do you have a few minutes to answer some questions?" His calm tone belied his feelings. Last year the Professor had barely looked at him. Harry told himself that he wouldn't be brushed aside this year. 

Seeing the determined expression on Harry's face, the Headmaster answered, "On to the next mystery, Harry? I'm sure you have many questions about the box and its contents. Remus also left a letter in my safekeeping. Perhaps you should examine that first." Reaching into his desk, he pulled out an envelope and handed it to Harry. Glancing across the room at Professor Lupin, who was ignoring them in favor of staring into the cold hearth of Dumbledore's fireplace, Harry took the letter. 

An urgent knock on the door distracted them. Professor McGonagall entered the room out of breath. "There has been another attack. Or so we think. It's the Burrow. The injured are being brought here."

Pocketing the letter, Harry was out of his seat and down the stairs before anyone could say anything. Professor McGonagall reached to stop him, but Dumbledore said, "Let him go. I'll try to contact members of the Order to find out more details and follow you in a few minutes."

The infirmary was bustling with activity. Cho's bed was being enclosed with screens while Madam Pomfrey was giving instructions to two younger women. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley arrived just as Harry did. For a moment they stood together in the door, stunned, their eyes searching for familiar faces. 

As a group of men surrounding one of the beds turned to leave, they could see Ginny holding Ron's hand as he lay unconscious. Hermione was in the bed next to him, also out cold. Ginny looked shaken, but she appeared to be unhurt. Harry rushed to her side, relief flooding through him. Their eyes locked in an intense gaze. Ginny let go of Ron's hand and rushed into Harry's arms. He felt like he could breathe again after having been suffocated. She was all right. 

Mrs. Weasley patted her daughter's back as she and her husband passed by them to see Ron and Hermione. Harry stepped back from Ginny to look her up and down, then pulled her back into the circle of his arms. She was extremely pale and he could feel her trembling. Into her hair, he asked, "Are you hurt anywhere? Shouldn't you be lying down?" 

She shook her head as she spoke in a torrent of words. "I I wasn't in the explosion! I don't know. I was outside heard a loud bang smoke was everywhere... I ran back and Ron Ron Hehe was lying so still and Hermione she was just lying there, too. There was smoke I couldn't breathe and Well, so I dragged them out. I don't know but I just Bill came He rescued us. He said He said he'd be here" She was gasping for air as she spoke, trying to get all of her words out. 

Harry whispered in her ear, "Sh That's enough. Everything is all right now. They're going to be fine. You're safe." Rubbing her back soothingly as he spoke, he tried to stay calm for her sake, hoping that what he was saying was true. They would be fine. They had to be. Looking over her shoulder at the motionless figures of his two best friends, he couldn't be sure. His heart filled with dread.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, who were listening intently to Ginny's explanation, broke in with questions. "How did you get here?" "Did someone attack you?"

"Please," said Harry, looking up at them with wild eyes. "Can't you see she's in shock?" He pulled a blanket off an empty bed and wrapped it over her shoulders and led her to a chair near Ron's bed. Then he handed her a steaming cup of tea. "Here, Ginny. I put extra sugar in it. This should help."

She felt better being wrapped up in something warm and soft. Holding the warm tea was a comfort, too. How have I lasted a day without Harry?' she thought, drawing strength from his presence. She sipped the tea and watched as Harry and her parents checked on Ron and Hermione. A warm feeling was beginning in her stomach and spreading as she watched him. It's just the tea,' she told herself.

Things were so crazy that no one even commented on Harry's conjuring a cup of tea without a wand. Madam Pomfrey was taking a moment to explain their injuries. He's so good in a crisis. Everyone feels better because he's here,' Ginny thought. 

Dumbledore and Remus chose that moment to arrive. "I trust everyone is being cared for, Madam Pomfrey. Is there anything you require?" the Headmaster asked. The adults put their heads together and began discussing the plans to take care of Ron and Hermione. 

Harry stood in the middle while they conferred around him, hoping that his best friends would be all right. He felt so helpless. Apparently a specialist from St. Mungo's was expected soon. Madam Pomfrey was confident that they hadn't suffered any lasting injury. Both patients had concussions. Dumbledore and Remus spoke with the Weasleys for a few more minutes and then left.

Visibly relieved, Harry moved back to Ginny and said, "You rescued them, Ginny. Well done." He smiled down at her. Still so relieved that she wasn't hurt, his eyes searched her face as he continued, "It's so good to see you. It feels like it has been so long. So much as happened. But I guess it was only yesterday afternoon that I left the Burrow. When things calm down, I have so much to tell you." 

The corners of his eyes were crinkling as he grinned at her. She felt like her insides were melting. She smiled softly in return, sipping her tea. "I can't wait to hear. We got your letter right before" Her voice trailed off and her gaze moved from Harry's face to something over his shoulder. 

"Harry," said Cho standing behind him in her hospital dressing gown. "What's happened?" Harry and Ginny's hug hadn't gone unnoticed. 

Harry jumped at the sight of Cho but recovered himself quickly enough to say, "The Burrow was attacked this morning or maybe there was some sort of weird accident. It's all being sorted out now. Should you be out of bed? Where's your brother?"

Madam Pomfrey answered the first question for her, "NO, she should not be out of bed. Please escort Miss Chang back to her place, Harry. You need complete bed rest and calm, young lady. Don't let me see you wandering again!"

Cho smiled up at Harry and took his arm. Ginny watched them walk away. He looked back over his shoulder at her, but she couldn't read his expression. Does he want Cho to lead him around? Does he like her?' She couldn't tell. Feeling unsettled at the sight of Cho leaning her head briefly against his shoulder, she reminded herself that friendship was all Harry had ever offered. Get a grip, Ginny. Or you'll make a fool of yourself following him around like you used to,' she lectured herself.

She heard her mother say, "I understand that we have to wait for the specialist, but can't you tell me anything more?" 

Mr. Weasley patted her arm and said, "We won't have long to wait to find out what the specialist thinks, dear." Hermione stirred and let out a low moan. 

"That can't be good," said Harry, having returned to the Weasley family as soon as he could. Hermione appeared to be wakening. Her forehead was wrinkled into a deep frown as though she was in pain. She made another groaning noise. 

"Ah..." said Madam Pomfrey as if she had been expecting this. "Seems like someone is waking up. Miss Granger, try to open your eyes." Hermione's eyes fluttered open, but she still looked like she was in pain. Madam Pomfrey lifted a potion bottle to her lips. In a few moments, her expression eased. 

Everyone gave a collective sigh of relief. "We were so worried, Hermione," started Ginny. 

Hermione looked confused. "Where am I? Hogwarts?" She spotted Ron in the next bed and gasped. "Ron? Oh my" Before anyone could stop her, she swung her feet out of the bed and started toward Ron. She took one step before crumpling to the cold stone floor. Arthur picked her up gently and put her back under her covers. "Please," she protested. 

Madam Pomfrey stepped forward, practically clucking, "That will be enough of that, Miss Granger. You won't do Mr. Weasley any good if you're unconscious again. Here, take these and stay under those blankets." She handed Hermione two potions bottles.

"What are those, Madam Pomfrey?" Harry asked, thinking Hermione would probably like to know what she was being asked to take. 

"The large bottle is a strengthening potion and the small blue bottle is a calming draught," the matron said, looking at Harry as though he had a lot of nerve questioning her methods. 

Patting his friend on the hand as he spoke, Harry reassured her. "Ron's going to be all right, Hermione. He's had a nasty hit on the head, same as you, but he should be coming around soon." For her sake, he forced a smile as she struggled to swallow the liquid in both bottles. "That's right, take your medicine like a good girl."

When she had finished the last of the potions, she seemed much more able to speak. Everyone was looking at her expectantly. She closed her eyes briefly and then looked around at their caring faces. Finally, she said quietly, "The last thing I remember is being in the kitchen at the Burrow We heard noises like there were people in the living room and Ron thought it was the twins so he went toward the door calling to them, then there was a loud bang. What happened? Is this some Wheezing' experiment gone wrong?"

"You just told us more than we knew, Hermione. Lay back and rest. You've had a concussion," said Ginny. 

A loud moan came from Ron. "What the bloody hell." Everyone's attention shifted to him as he began to come around. His eyes were squeezed tightly shut as he woke up to the extreme pain in his head. The Weasleys crowded around him quietly. Harry stayed with Hermione to keep her from following.

Madam Pomfrey pushed through the crowd around his bed with the same potions she'd given to Hermione. "There you are Mr. Weasley. Decided to join us at last."

Ron let out another groan. "My head" was the only thing he said. 

"I daresay your head is going to mend," Madam Pomfrey said with a smile. "Can you hear me, young man? Sit up and take both of these potions." Another group sigh came from the Weasley clan. Ron drank his potions and sank back on his pillow still keeping his eyes tightly closed. 

"Hermione?" Ron asked quietly. 

"She's here, Ron. She's going to be just fine," Ginny said, taking his hand in hers. "Looks like you will be, too." She turned around to see Harry grinning at them, visibly relieved. Hermione managed a weak smile. Ron closed his eyes again and put his head back down for some more rest. 

Bill Weasley had quietly joined them as Ginny was speaking. He gave his mother a hug and asked, "How are they? Is Ron okay?" 

"He'll be all right, dear. We're waiting for the specialist. Hermione and he have come around already." Mrs. Weasley motioned to Ron's girlfriend who was lying on her pillow, pale but composed. "What happened at the Burrow? How did you get involved?"

"I've just come from there. Aurors are still investigating. They think that Death Eaters attacked the Burrow triggering the wards. That's what alerted me to come and bring help. Either there were so many of them that the anti-intruder ward overreacted, so to speak, or they tried some magic of their own that caused the explosion. In any case, all five of them are dead. They were probably knocked out first, and then died of smoke inhalation. What about Ron?" 

"Madam Pomfrey thinks he has a concussion. He's just resting now. What sort of damage is there at the Burrow?" she asked. 

Smiling down at his petite mother, Bill answered, "It should be repaired by the time you get home." 

"How is that possible?" asked Ginny. "The fire. The kitchen was full of smoke. Smoke was coming out of all of the downstairs windows." 

"Smoke, yes. Fire, no. The explosion or the smoke set off the fire prevention wards so the damage was minimal. The furniture and things are being repaired. I left Fred, George and their friend Lee Jordan working on setting things right. You all have enough to worry about here," Bill answered with a big smile. Mrs. Weasley looked a little skeptical at the thought of the twins redecorating their living room.

Mr. Weasley spoke up, "I'm sure the boys will do a good job. So all the extra wards we put up when we knew Harry was coming to stay worked really well." He sounded pleased. 

"You wouldn't have needed them if Harry Potter would just learn to stay away from people," shouted Charles Chang from across the room, pointing at Harry. 

Bill shouted, "Who are you? Sod off!"

Moving to stand next to her oldest brother, Ginny yelled, "Yeah, sod off, Chang! If it weren't for Harry, we'd all be under Voldemort's control!" 

Hermione cried out weakly. "Who do you think you are?"

Mr. Weasley said more calmly, "Let's never forget that Harry is his main target. He needs our help!" 

Cho was out of bed again, tugging on her brother's arm. Charles shook her off and shouted something unintelligible back at the Weasleys. Bill and Ginny were screaming something at the same time. As the shouting match continued, Harry couldn't make out anything they were saying. His ears were ringing. Madam Pomfrey was hurrying toward them.

Mrs. Weasley lips became a thin line, her eyes narrowed and her hands were on her hips. "Enough!" she said, with the voice of authority that had helped her raise six boys. "Harry is always welcome at the Burrow, young man. We're proud to call him a part of our family." She smiled fiercely at Harry and patted his arm. 

Harry was warmed by her words, but in his heart he knew Charles Chang had a point. The beds in this infirmary were filling up because of him. Voldemort was targeting his friends. Anger swelled up within him. He struggled to contain it. His blood was pounding in his ears, but he managed to say, "Thank you, Mrs. Weasley. I will...I think I'll go for a walk." 

As he strode toward the exit he could hear Madam Pomfrey threatening to kick everyone out of the infirmary if they didn't quiet down. When he reached the door, he felt a soft hand in his. Looking down into Ginny's face, some of his anger melted away. She looked up at him so trustingly. She wasn't afraid to be near him. He stopped. "Ginny, you should stay with your family. They need you now. I just need to clear my head."

"You can't tell me what to do, Harry. I'm coming with you." she answered. She could be stubborn. 

"I'll come with you, too, Harry," said Bill, who was now standing behind them. Ginny grinned at her brother and turned back to Harry with a triumphant look. Harry shook his head at her, his anger evaporating some more at their show of support. He smiled at them both and said, "I know a place by the lake." 

The sun was shining brightly. It would have been a hot day except for the breeze blowing off the lake. The breeze made the water ripple with sparkling waves. The giant squid poked a tendril up every now and then. The three didn't speak much as they took a long walk along the shore to a spot Harry liked overlooking the lake with a view of the school in the distance. From so far away Hogwarts looked peaceful and serene, like a castle in a fairy tale. 

As they settled under the shade of a tree, Harry used his wand to conjure a large quilt and a picnic basket. Ginny looked taken aback, but her surprise was that Harry had used his wand, not that he had conjured food. She'd seen that plenty of times this summer.

Bill laughed. "Now if that basket has some cold butterbeer, I'll be a happy man." Harry handed Bill and Ginny each a bottle before opening his own. Bill looked at Ginny sipping her drink and said, "Are you corrupting my little sister with butterbeer, Potter?"

Both Harry and Ginny blushed. Remembering Charles Chang just the day before yelling at him to stay away from his sister made Harry rethink what Bill's motives were in accompanying them on this walk. Maybe he thinks it's not safe for Ginny to be near me - even here at Hogwarts. Did he come along to warn me to stay away from her?' he wondered.

Ginny recovered enough to speak, "Don't go all big brother on me, Bill. I can drink a butterbeer if I want. AND I can hold my own against boys who want to corrupt' me as you put it." Her voice was getting louder as she spoke. She sounded a lot like Mrs. Weasley. 

"Don't get in a temper, little one. I can't help but look out for you." She didn't seem appeased. He continued on a more serious note, "You took care of everyone this morning, pulling them out of that smoke filled room."

At those words, Ginny gave him a hug. As he held his sister close, Bill looked meaningfully over her shoulder into Harry's eyes as if to say, See how precious she is? We can't let anything happen to her. She needs protection.' Harry nodded his silent agreement.

Their meal passed pleasantly without much conversation. Bill told a story about the giant squid playing a sort of water polo game against twenty students at a time during his Hogwarts days. Harry told them about the night before, rescuing Professor Lupin from the cave and finding the sword. After they finished eating, Ginny wandered off a short way to pick wildflowers for Hermione, Ron and Cho. Harry didn't join her, sensing Bill wanted a chance to talk. 

After a long silence, Harry decided to start the conversation himself, no use pretending. "I'll do anything I can to keep your family safe, Bill."

"Does that include Ginny?" Bill asked.

"Of course, she's a Weasley." Harry felt self-conscious. 

"Are you her boyfriend, then?" asked Bill. He noticed they were quite comfortable holding hands while they walked. 

Harry looked at the ground. "Dean Thomas, one of my roommates, is her boyfriend. I don't have a girlfriend. Maybe it's better that way." 

"Is that because her brother ordered you away? Was Cho Chang your girlfriend? Is that why she was attacked?" asked Bill. 

"Cho and I went out once, but she was dating someone else at the end of last year. In July, she wrote me a letter that may have triggered the attack. I'm not interested in Cho." As he answered, his eyes unconsciously following Ginny as she picked flowers. 

Following his gaze, Bill continued, "But you're interested in Ginny, despite the Dean thing. Who is this Dean? Why haven't I ever met him?" Lowering his voice, he challenged Harry with, "Any fool could see you have a thing for Ginny. You can't take your eyes off of her." 

Panicking that Bill would say that to his sister, Harry decided he'd better make a strong denial. "Please don't tell Ginny that. We're just friends, close friends." 

Bill didn't say anything. He was looking intently at Harry who seemed lost in thought at the moment. Back in the infirmary when they were arguing with Cho's brother, Harry had begun to radiate power. It came off him in waves as though he couldn't control it. Ginny must surely have felt it, but she didn't shrink away. She followed him anyway. Maybe he was out of line questioning Harry, but he had to make sure she was protected.

Still following her daisy picking progress with his eyes, Harry continued, "I assure you Dean Thomas exists, and he is her boyfriend. They've been dating since last spring. They were together just yesterday in Diagon Alley. Ginny and I are just friends which is great... I promise I'll do what I can to keep her safe. You're not going to ask me to stay away from her like Charles Chang did, are you?" 

Bill listened carefully while he spoke. He sounded so desperate. Despite his denial, Harry had it bad for Ginny. When Harry finished, Bill replied, "No, I'm not like that git back there. You don't have to worry about me. And I won't say anything to Ginny if you promise to help keep her safe. And you already have, so we're cool."

"Well, you are cool, Bill," said Ginny who had just rejoined them holding a large bouquet of wildflowers. "I'm not so sure about Harry though," she said as she trickled little white flowers over his head. "He wears flowers in his hair." She giggled softly, her face alight with a wide smile.

Harry just let the flowers fall around him and smiled back at her. "Shall we go check on the patients?" he asked as he stood up and stretched. Waving his hand, he banished the remains of their picnic without thinking about it. 

She took his hand and they left. They spent the rest of the afternoon in the infirmary keeping Hermione, Ron and Cho company and trying not to worry.

At teatime, Dumbledore and Remus reappeared to check on the patients and to reclaim Harry. Ginny and Bill asked to come along so they could see Harry's new sword. They settled into Dumbledore's office with hot tea and biscuits. Bill and Ginny hadn't heard what McGonagall said about the symbols on the sword so Harry told them what he remembered about it. 

"You work at Gringotts, don't you, Bill?" Harry asked. "What kind of charm makes it possible for only certain people to enter a vault? Why could no one enter the trust vault before now?"

Bill wasn't surprised that Harry was curious. He'd heard about the Potter trust. "I'm not giving away any trade secrets. Blood charms have been around for centuries. Before more modern wards were invented, blood charms were used to prevent entry to most dwellings. We still use them at Gringotts on a variety of accounts. A trust account is one of them. In fact, with a trust that is centuries old, like the Potter trust, the blood charm would be incredibly strong, unbreakable. Only you, or your guardian, would be able to enter."

A centuries old vault, a lineage going back hundreds of years, all this made Harry think. He'd grown up believing he had no one but the Dursleys who spent most of their time disowning him. They suffered his presence unwillingly and always made sure he understood that he was a freak, not really a part of their family. 

Of course, he didn't aspire to be a Dursley. They had nothing in common. He'd found a better home at Hogwarts and with the Weasleys. Yet here was the news that he was part of a long line of Potters. The box by the window had been held by centuries of Potters, just like him. He was a part of them, and they were a part of him. 

These thoughts humbled him and elevated him at the same time. He couldn't wait to see the other contents of the vault. Maybe Professor Lupin would take him there soon. 

While Harry was deep in thought, Bill and Ginny said goodbye and left for the infirmary. Dumbledore asked, "Do you still have the letter, Harry?" Harry had forgotten all about the letter from his parents' vault. 

This is just like the mirror. I set it aside and forgot about it even though it could have saved a life. Why do I keep doing this? This letter could be really important,' Harry wondered to himself staring at the unopened envelope. On the front was written - For Harry on his Sixteenth Birthday.

Remus spoke, "I found this letter in your parents' vault along with a letter addressed to Sirius which instructed him to give you the carved wooden box and this letter on your sixteenth birthday. When I found them, your birthday had already passed. I'm sorry these are getting to you so late. The letter from your parents and the box are charmed so only you can open them." 

Harry tore open the letter. A single page was inside. On it was written - Happy Sixteenth Birthday, Harry! Tap this with your wand. Love, Mum and Dad.

Harry showed the page to Dumbledore and Remus. "Maybe it's charmed with a memory like Tom Riddles' diary. Your mother was truly gifted with Charms. Go ahead and try it," urged Dumbledore. Harry tapped the paper with his wand. The paper glowed brightly and he disappeared.

Harry found himself in a soft chair in a comfortable sitting room that was unfamiliar to him. Seated opposite him were two familiar people. James and Lily Potter were sitting together on a sofa and smiling at each other. His father had an arm draped over his mother's shoulder. She said to him, "Stare at the chair." He laughed and turned toward Harry without quite making eye contact. 

Harry watched them in stunned silence. From his experience with pensieves and Tom Riddle's enchanted diary, he knew they couldn't see or speak with him. He was simply witnessing a memory they had preserved for the occasion. 

His father cleared his throat, and said, "Hello, Harry. If you're seeing this, then you probably grew up only hearing about us from your godfather, that reprobate Sirius. I am your father, James Potter and this is your beautiful mother, Lily." 

Lily punched his arm lightly. "I can speak for myself. Happy Birthday, Harry! Wish we could be with you to celebrate. We hoped to spend our lives together. If you are watching this, that didn't happen. I hope you have had a happy childhood. We love you and want you to have the best of everything. We know Sirius loves you just as much so I am sure you have had lots of love and maybe a little too much fun sometimes," she laughed. Her eyes sparkled at the thought of what Sirius would be like as a parent. 

"Explain the trust," interrupted James. 

"It's your family trust, so you should explain it, James," she said. 

His father began, "The Potter family trust is centuries old and consists of many holdings which can only be passed on to the eldest male in direct descent. That means you. The deeds and records for the real estate holdings are kept in the trust vault at Gringotts. You'll also find cash, jewelry and various old family artifacts including some art and furnishings. Some of these are extremely old. Now that you are sixteen, you'll have access to this vault. 

You won't be considered a full adult wizard until you turn seventeen at which time you can withdraw money from the vault. At that point you can decide whether to keep your juvenile trust vault open or have the remaining cash transferred to the main vault."

"Sirius will help him figure all this stuff out, James. Tell him about the box. It's his sixteenth birthday." Lily lifted the box off the table. 

"This box has been in the family for centuries. With each generation, the eldest male heir, the person who stands to inherit, tries to open the box on his sixteenth birthday. It obviously has a preservation charm on it because even though it's made out of wood, it is the only thing that survived the burning of Potter manor in 1648. It is supposed to have a blood charm on it as well as a power charm. Legend has it that the Potter family will produce an heir with enough power by the time he turns sixteen to open the box. It never opened for me. As far as I know it has never opened for anyone. We don't even know what's inside. It could be nothing. But it is a pretty box and kind of an intriguing mystery. 

I wish I could be there to see you try. I would love to know what's in the box. Whatever it is, it's important enough to be handed on to the next generation for all this time." James stopped. "Let's just talk to him or something. He grew up without hearing your voice," he said to Lily sweetly as if missing the sound of her voice would be a huge loss.

Lily laughed. "As you can see, Harry, your father has a great deal of irresistible charm. I'm sure you've heard plenty of stories about us from Sirius," she hesitated before adding, "and Peter and Remus, of course. Let me tell you about what you were like when you were a baby. That's something only we really know.

I knew you were magical from almost the day you were born. From the first your father and I would do anything to get you to smile. You are probably pretty good on a broomstick, too, because you always loved to fly. Your dad used to float you around this room when you were only a toddler and it only made you giggle. In fact it was all I could do to keep Sirius and your father from taking you flying on a broomstick."

At this comment, James looked a little guilty. His eyes widened and he looked at his feet. Then he looked up at the chair and gave a wink.

His mother continued speaking, "You were a sweet baby, never fussy, always looking around and alert like you were taking everything in. You have your father's hair and my eyes, and Sirius' sense of humor. Your godfather could always get you to laugh, even when you were tiny," she finished, starting to ramble a little. 

"We're almost out of time," said James, pointing at a clock on the mantle. "Say goodbye, Lily."

Tears were shining in his mother's eyes, but she smiled as she said, "I'm so glad you're my son, Harry. I'm more proud of you than you'll ever know. I love you very much." She buried her face in James' shoulder. 

"We're both proud of you, Harry. I'm sorry we couldn't be there for you growing up. Remember that no matter what has happened, we love you." He continued into his wife's hair, "He's sleeping upstairs, you know. He may never even see this." 

Her head popped up and she gave her husband a swift kiss on the cheek. She turned to the chair and said, "Happy Sixteenth Birthday, Harry! And" just as he was pulled out of the memory. His face was covered with tears he hadn't noticed as he landed back in the chair in Dumbledore's office. Tears for what might have been, if onlyhe quickly wiped his face with the sleeve of his robe. 

Remus and Dumbledore waited for him to recover. Fawkes landed on Harry's shoulder to comfort him. Harry finally said, "It was mainly personal. They talked about the Potter trust, which must be the vault where you picked up this letter and the box. What were you hoping would be explained, Professor?"

Dumbledore put his long fingers together and said, "Since the box and the letter came together, I was hoping they would know something about the Potter's connection to Merlin. What did your parents say about the box, Harry?" 

Harry explained what his father had said and added, "He said that no one had ever been able to open the box before, but they continued to hand it down to the next generation anyway. He didn't say anything about Myrddin or Merlin." He hesitated, then added, "I opened the box without any trouble, Professor. What does it mean?"

"It means you are a powerful wizard, Harry, as well as the Potter heir. Not exactly new information, is it? As to what use you can make of the contents of the box, I cannot say. This was meant for you. Its contents are a puzzle for you to solve. Of course, I'll help you any way I can. You've only to ask, Harry." Professor Dumbledore handed the box back to him, looking straight into his green eyes. 

He hoped that this gesture of support and confidence would help rebuild some of the trust that was lost last year. He'd only meant to protect the boy by keeping him out of the action and ignorant of the prophecy, but he knew Harry wasn't quite certain of him yet. He'd have to earn his trust, show him that he could rely on him.

As Harry took the box from the Headmaster, he was struck by the contrast between last year and this. Back then Dumbledore wouldn't meet his eyes, and refused to explain anything. He'd been shut up at the Dursleys and treated like a difficult child. Now he appeared to be willing to accept Harry as a person capable of rational choices. 

Harry ran his fingers along the carving on the box. Perhaps its contents contained clues to his long lost family. It was a connection to them at any rate. Why had some ancestor of his, long ago, carefully preserved a large ruby, a black phoenix statue, a round gold band and an old book? What made these things important enough to hand them down for centuries? Would he ever know?

It was his mystery to solve. He was old enough and strong enough to find his own path, but it would be easier if he didn't have to make his way completely on his own. He had so much to learn. Remembering the resolution he'd made earlier in the summer, that he wouldn't let anyone plan his life for him, Harry decided to accept Dumbledore's help. He looked back up at the aging wizard with a smile and a nod.

A/N: My thanks go to Hollow Godric for beta reading this chapter. I appreciate his help. 

Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	10. Face to Face

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

lordtartutus: Thanks for reviewing! I'm trying to update quickly, but it has been difficult to log on to ff.net lately. 

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syntron: Nothing gets by you. The answer is that someone has trusted the wrong person. There'll be more on that in later chapters. Thanks for your note!

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PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: I appreciate your comment. Thanks. Soon everyone will be back at Hogwarts to complicate things, but first, a little more drama. 

Chapter Ten

Face to Face

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A full moon was shining. The sound of a loud bark rang through the winter night. It sounded far enough away. Continuing to run as fast as possible, the only sound he could hear was his own out of breath panting and the snow crunching under his feet. Dashing through the pine trees, he was winning the race until with a growl of triumph, he was tackled to the ground. The large black dog seemed to spring from nowhere. The two wrestled in the snow, matching bites and growls until exhaustion overtook them.  


Remus Lupin sat in Harry's sitting room looking out at the Forbidden Forest. Harry was due back from the infirmary any minute. Thoughts of Sirius were always close to the surface. He sat there staring, remembering what it felt like to run free in those trees with Padfoot in Animagus form. It was all those years ago and it was yesterday. Their lives were full of promise and hope back then. What would they have done if they'd known how things would end?

They should have believed in each other more, kept faith in their friendship. Instead Voldemort, or really it was Peter even then, had planted the seeds of doubt. There was a traitor in their midst. No one suspected Peter. Everyone suspected him, the Werewolf, the dark creature. He couldn't deny the Wolf inside. He spent every day with him. He couldn't blame them for not trusting him. He struggled to trust himself.

When Sirius went to Azkaban without a trial, he turned his back on him. He could have trusted his friend. Losing James and Lily was so grim, so tragic. Peter was gone, too. Sirius seemed guilty. All his friends were lost in one horrible betrayal. He hadn't dealt with his grief well, even then. Poor Harry was sent to live with Muggles. He was powerless to help him. I really believed he was better off without me. I had nothing to offer anyone but grief,' he thought.

Life had gone on. A measure of worth had returned. Then Harry had brought him hope. He'd brought Sirius back to him. That night in the Shrieking Shack began with the thought that he was going to avenge them, Harry and his parents, by capturing his old friend. Instead he'd found Peter alive and well and guilty as hell. Padfoot was back. Their friendship was restored.

That was then, before the Department of Mysteries. Now he had to face Harry. He'd put it off all summer, brooding in Grimmauld Place, lost to grief and guilt. The letter wasn't enough. He wrote it, but never sent it. He had to apologize to his face. Keeping Harry from following Sirius through the veil was haunting him. Harry had restored his friendship with Sirius, brought him back from the dead for two years, and he had repaid him by letting his godfather die. 

Harry had screamed his grief that night. Obviously, he felt Sirius' death strongly. He'd almost followed him. He lost his last hope of having a real family. Then Dumbledore sent him to the purgatory that was life at the Dursleys. I was no good to him last summer, too busy howling about my own grief to come to terms with Harry's loss. I've failed him all of his life. What can I offer him now? Dumbledore should just find someone else to be his guardian. It's foolish to leave the task to me.' 

*****

After checking on the Weasleys, Harry walked into his rooms quietly. Professor Lupin was sitting staring out at the forest. He'd wanted to talk to him all summer, wanted to explain how sorry he was. Now that he had to face him alone, he wasn't so sure. Sirius had been this man's best friend. Now he's dead because of me,' he thought as he cleared his throat and gathered his courage. "Hello, Professor. I'm glad you're here." 

"Hello, Harry," answered Remus just as formally. They both avoided eye contact. 

The silence stretched between them. Harry didn't trust himself to speak. His eyes were shining with unshed tears. Lupin broke the silence, "I'm so sorry, Harry. I know you wanted to see me this summer. I just wasn't in any condition to see anyone. Too many memories... I've never been good at grief."

Harry couldn't stop the tears from falling. His voice cracked as he said, "I'm sorry, too, Professor, more than I can say. If I hadn't been so stupid, none of it would have happened. I just didn't think straight. I don't know how to ask you to forgive me when I can't forgive myself." His face turned red as anger and grief welled up inside him. The air around him began to crackle. The months of keeping a lid on his emotions forgotten. It was as though his grief had been kept fresh by the guilt he kept inside. For the moment, he couldn't blame Snape or Kreacher. He had to face that it was all his fault. 

Shaking his head, Remus answered, "No, Harry. Stop. I've been trying to figure out how to say I'm sorry to you. Voldemort has fooled stronger men than you. It wasn't your fault. I could have stopped Sirius. I should have Stunned him and left him behind in a Binding Spell. He could have been caught going to the Ministry - of all places." He put his arms around Harry. 

Harry was embarrassed to cry on Remus' shoulder. He pulled himself up, struggling to stop the tears, and said, "I've really been doing all right. The summer has been good. I think I'll always feel this way about Sirius. There will always be a part of me that feels this awful anger and guilt and sadness." 

"If there weren't, you wouldn't be human, Harry." He hesitated, trying to put this next part into words. "I didn't just want to say I'm sorry, Harry. I also wanted thank you."

"What?" said Harry, almost laughing at the suggestion that there was something to thank him for in all of this grief. "I made a mess of things, Professor."

"I wanted to thank you for giving me my friend back for two years, Harry." He put his hand up as if to say, Stop.' "Let me explain. This isn't my first time mourning Sirius. For twelve years, I lost all my friends. All the people I'd loved and who'd loved me. The Marauders accepted me even with my affliction. And we had a great time. Sirius, your father, your mother, even Peter, we had so much fun. Then I spent twelve years thinking it had all been a lie, that Sirius wasn't who I thought he was, that he had killed Peter and turned Lily and James, and even you, over to Voldemort. My world turned upside down. Until you gave me hope by bringing Sirius back to life. You gave me two years, Harry."

"And then I took it away again," said Harry darkly. 

"What would you give for more time with Sirius, right now, Harry?"

He'd give anything, all his gold, gladly if he could have Sirius back. He answered, "Anything."

"That's how I felt, too. Then, you gave me two whole years, Harry. That was really quite something."

Silence fell on the two. A different silence this time. An understanding began. Remus punched Harry lightly on his arm. Harry grinned and wiped away the remainder of his tears. They talked into the evening; sharing stories about Sirius - running in the forest, watching Harry play Quidditch in his dog form. Life would go on. They would have each other and Sirius' memory.

****

The following morning, Harry stayed under the shower an extra long time. It had been great to finally speak with Professor Lupin. While the two of them had cleared the air between them, the birthday message from his parents and the question of his heritage had unsettled him. 

The last few days had brought Harry one shock after another. First he had to watch Ginny hug Dean. He wasn't really over that yet. Then Cho had been attacked and her brother had blamed him. Then he had helped rescue Professor Lupin - who turned out to be his new godfather - from a mysterious cave where he found a wonderful sword. Then the Burrow had been attacked with Ginny making a narrow escape with an injured Ron and Hermione. And on top of everything, Dumbledore drops the news that they think he might be connected with Merlin. Could it be true? He hoped it wasn't. 

Harry stepped out of the shower. The room was filled with steam. He heard a noise in his bedroom so he wrapped a towel around his waist. Without his glasses or contact lenses, he couldn't see, but he thought it must be Dobby so he stepped into the bedroom to collect his clothes. 

He heard a rather feminine gasp and saw a flash of red hair. Harry said, "Sorry, I thought you must be Dobby."

"What's going on here?" He heard a decidedly masculine voice ask from the outer room. 

"Is that you Professor Lupin?" asked Harry trying to wipe the steam off his old glasses. With his vision coming into focus, Harry saw Ginny with her back to him near the door to his bedroom and Remus near the door in the room beyond. Suddenly uncomfortably aware that he was almost naked, dripping wet and practically alone with the girl of his dreams, Harry said, "Could you shut the door for me, Ginny? I'll be out in a moment." His voice sounded lower than usual, almost a growl.

"Certainly, Harry," she answered stiffly. Without turning around, she shut the door.

It was very quiet when Harry finally joined the other two. "All right, Ginny, Professor?" he asked. "How are the patients this morning?"

"They are the same. Cho has her family with her. Both Ron and Hermione were sleeping and Mum made me leave," Ginny answered. The special medi-wizard from St. Mungo's had performed numerous Healing Charms on Ron and Hermione the evening before. Ginny had stayed as late as she could. The Weasleys were occupying a suite of rooms just across from the Changs near the infirmary which was meant for the families of patients in the Hogwarts infirmary. 

"Have either of you had breakfast? Let's have something to eat before we go down," Harry suggested. Ginny was still blushing and unusually quiet. She and Professor Lupin both looked a little pale. Trying to steer the conversation from the towel scene, hoping that wasn't what was on their minds, Harry said, "What is it? Not another Death Eater attack. Did they get the Dursleys this time?"

Remus laughed at the hopeful tone in his voice. "You've had quite a week, haven't you? If you are going to interpret every pause in the conversation as a prelude to an important announcementI came to say goodbye for the next couple of days. I'm headed to Wolfhaven Inn. Full moon tomorrow night."

Ginny relaxed a little and gave them both a small smile. "Good luck, Professor. I'd like some breakfast, Harry," she said, not meeting his eyes. 

With a wave of his hand, the table was set for three with Ginny's favorite breakfast foods: apple muffins, porridge, pumpkin juice, bacon, eggs and tomatoes. Ginny and Harry relaxed while they ate and talked. Harry pointed out that the view from his rooms of the Forbidden Forest must mean they were near Gryffindor Tower, but he wasn't quite sure where they were. 

Professor Lupin gave both Harry and Ginny a speech about how he wanted them to start calling him Remus since he wasn't working at Hogwarts anymore. He promised to go with Harry to the Potter trust vault as soon as they could arrange it. Harry explained to Ginny about the vault and the possibility that the Potters may have a connection to Merlin. "You should keep that idea to yourself, Harry. I know you trust Ginny, but you wouldn't want that rumor circulating. You are enough of a target anyway," warned Remus. 

"Of course, you are right, Prof.., I mean, Remus," replied Harry. "I trust Ginny with all my secrets." Except for one,' he thought to himself.

When Remus had left, Ginny suggested they finish drinking their tea out on the terrace. Harry and Ginny were unusually quiet. It was not the comfortable companionable silence that they had enjoyed over the summer. Clearly Ginny had something on her mind, but didn't know how to bring it up so Harry broke the stillness. 

Grinning, he asked, "What's on your mind, Ginny? Is this about walking in on me wearing a towel?" 

Ginny giggled, glad that he could joke about that embarrassing moment. "I'll cherish the memory - Harry and his towel. Where's my sketchbook so I can get it down on paper?" she teased. Then she continued more seriously, "I had a run in with Cho's brother last night and I keep turning it over in my mind. I'm not sure I really want to talk about it right now." 

Harry could just imagine what Charles had said to Ginny, probably more warnings about the dangers of being near him. Anger swelled up in his chest like a serpent rising. The air around them crackled. 

Watching Harry fire up with anger, sensing the power he couldn't control, Ginny thought, maybe there is some truth to what Charles said about Harry being dangerous. Even Voldemort is afraid of him. But, he would never hurt me. I know he wouldn't.' 

While she was thinking, she watched Harry who was staring out at the Forbidden Forest with a grim look on his face. She slipped her hand into his and tilted her head with a smile to get his attention. Looking into her sparkling golden-brown eyes, Harry calmed down. He smiled back. He didn't know how long they smiled at each other; they lost track of time until the air around them made one loud snap as though some sort of magical tension was discharged. 

Lifting her hand so that he could hold it with both of his, Harry said, "No matter what, I'm your friend, Gin. If you need to keep your distance, I'll understand. I hope you know you can always talk to me." At that he remembered something and said, "Oh, speaking of always being able to talk to me." He pulled two little blue framed mirrors out of his pocket. "I sent Dobby to buy these. If you want, I can Charm them so that we can talk to each other no matter where we are. Your mirror can only be activated by your voice so neither of us will catch the other wearing just a towel or something." 

He grinned at her. "I bought them because of what happened to Remus. If we hadn't had a double mirror, we never would have found him. Thankfully, his rescue was easy. We just walked in and walked out with him, but another rescue might be more difficult. A mirror like this could save a life. Not that I'm suggesting anything is going to happen to you." He was suddenly concerned that he was going to worry her. "We'll have these just in case. It'll make you safer, Gin." He spoke as though he had to talk her into this. 

"It will make you safer, too, Harry. What a good idea!" she answered. 

Harry was relieved she didn't bring up what Dean will think of this. He suspected Ginny's boyfriend wouldn't be too happy that they had communication set up - twenty-four, seven - just for them. If it makes her safer, he should be happy about it,' Harry rationalized as he performed the charm and presented her with her little mirror. 

As they made their way down to the infirmary, Harry held back and tested the mirror, quietly saying, "Ginny Weasley!" into his mirror. She stopped short and looked back up the stairs where Harry was, laughing when she realized his voice was coming from her pocket. 

"Hello," she said. All she could see was her own nose. 

"You have to say my name into your mirror," Harry shouted down to her. She did and Harry's nose and mouth appeared in her mirror. 

"Will it work if you hold it far enough back to see your whole face?" she asked. They played around with their mirrors and discovered that if you held it back far enough to show your whole face, then you had to practically shout for the other person to hear you. 

They both agreed quickly that the mirrors should remain their little secret. Neither said why. Harry didn't want Dean to know. Ginny, though, hadn't thought about Dean since the attack on the Burrow. She was afraid of what Ron would say. He might think she was a scarlet woman' if he found out she'd seen Harry in a towel and now had a way to talk to him even late at night. School would begin in a couple of days. Now that Ron and Hermione were out of danger, they could enjoy having the castle to themselves.

A/N: Thanks once again to Hollow Godric for all of his help beta reading! 

Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	11. September 1st

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: 

PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: Thanks for being a loyal reader! I am really glad to hear you like Remus, too. Rest assured that Remus and Harry will have more bonding time as this story progresses. 

Nightwing 509: I'll try. Thanks for reviewing!

Lourdes: Thank you for your nice comments! I hear what you are saying about having to reread stories when it has been a while since the update. I will try to update frequently. Just so you know, there is zero chance of me abandoning this story. Thanks for reviewing.

scott: If only they could read each other's minds Thanks for reviewing! 

PENNYPACKER: Succinct! (And thanks!)

Hannah: If you finish writing your story, I promise to read and review it. You're absolutely right. Thanks for reviewing!

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Chapter Eleven

September 1st

Harry woke up early on September first. Fog lay over the forest, but the day promised to be bright. The air was still. Charming his dressing gown to keep him warm in the early morning chill, he wandered outside onto the small terrace with a cup of tea hoping to watch the sun come up over the trees. It was a beautiful sight; trees full of summery green leaves, a blue fog bank laying on top and the early morning sun turning the clouds a delicate pink. 

His reverie was broken by the sight of a large, hairy man with a black dog strolling toward the small hut near the woods. Harry smiled widely. Hagrid had returned to Hogwarts. Neither he nor Fang looked up when Harry called so he figured that he was too high up to be heard. 

Deciding to have breakfast with Hagrid, Harry hurried into the bedroom. He put on Muggle jeans and a plain white tee shirt, throwing his Hogwarts robe over the top. School didn't start until the feast this evening so he didn't worry about being out of uniform. He grabbed his Firebolt and flew off the terrace of his tower, landing right outside Hagrid's door. 

Suddenly worried about being too early in the morning, Harry hesitated a moment. Before he had a chance to knock, the door opened and a large black dog had him lying on the ground. He could hear laughter only it wasn't just Hagrid. "Moody?" he said, looking up at Hagrid and trying to see inside the hut.

"How do you do that, Potter? I'm wearing an Invisibility Cloak," said Mad-Eye Moody, his head emerging as if from thin air. 

"It was your cruel laughter that gave you away, Professor. My being attacked by a vicious dog amuses you?" Harry was laughing, too. No one who knew Hagrid's dog Fang would really think he was vicious. He was busy drooling affectionately on Harry's shoulder even as he spoke. 

Hagrid pulled Harry to his feet, "All righ' there, Arry?" he asked. "We were jus' lettin' Fang out for some fresh air."

"All right, Hagrid, Moody," Harry said, nodding at each man as he spoke their names. "I thought I'd come see how you are. How was your summer?"

"Come have a cuppa, Harry. Mad-Eye and I were jus' sittin' down ter some rock cakes and tea." Hagrid's rock cakes were legendary for being extremely rock like. 

"Have you been out flying, Potter? Isn't it kind of early? Does anyone know you went out?" asked Mad-Eye. 

Harry smiled although he knew the Professor was completely serious. "Constant vigilance, I know," he reassured Mad-Eye, holding up his wand. 

As they ate their rock cakes and drank their tea, Harry filled them in on the events since the attack at the Burrow. He told Hagrid about his new sword. Mad-Eye had already seen it that day in Dumbledore's office. "What brings you to Hogwarts today, Professor? If it's Order business, I understand. Maybe you can't tell me." 

His words disguised his feelings. Harry tried to curb the anger that sprung up at the thought that Order business was off limits to him. He was supposed to just face Voldemort and kill him without ever knowing the whole plan.

Mad-Eye answered, "It will be your business soon enough, Harry. I'm to be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher as a favor to Albus." 

Harry grinned. "For real this time? Maybe we should make you sit under our watchful eye for a couple of hours and make sure this is really you," he joked. Two years before they had thought their Defense professor was Mad-Eye Moody, but it turned out to be a Death Eater named Barty Crouch, Jr. "Or maybe we should just search your luggage for Polyjuice ingredients."

"Very funny, Potter. As your professor, you'll have to show me more respect. You'll have to start calling me Professor Moody." 

"I've always called you Professor. Anyway, it's a small price to pay for finally having a Defense teacher who knows about defense. Last year, we formed a club so we could practice. We weren't allowed to use our wands in Defense class. I'll look forward to your teaching, Professor Moody. Does this mean you're going to keep sneaking up on me like you did this summer at Privet Drive?" When it was his turn to keep watch over Harry, Mad-Eye had been giving him defense lessons and testing his reflexes by sneaking up on him. Harry thought it was kind of a fun game. He'd become fairly skilled at detecting the Auror. Of course, it didn't hurt that he walked with the aid of a wooden leg.

"I heard about your club, Potter. Everyone who was in the D.A. passed their Defense O.W.L. test. You made the highest score Hogwarts has ever seen. I understand they gave you extra credit points for your Patronus," Mad-Eye said. "Do you want to keep your D.A. club going? We should talk later after we've both had a chance to speak with the Headmaster." 

"Thanks, Professor. Defense is my best subject, but I will have Quidditch practice soon," Harry answered. "I'm looking forward to Care of Magical Creatures, too, Hagrid. What do you have lined up for the sixth years? Any nine-headed dragons being held in a special place in the Forbidden Forest?"

"Ha..." answered Hagrid loudly. "Wouldn' that be a wonder. Nothin' so rare as that, Arry. Six' years help with many animals the younger uns study, like unicorns. A course, boys aren't much help with em. They like girls." 

"When you say help,' do you mean feed them?" Harry asked, remembering that they had already learned about feeding unicorns. 

"No, the younger uns feed em. Yeh get ter help me catch em, Harry," answered Hagrid. 

Harry couldn't wait. The year promised to be so much better than the year before. He thanked them both and took off on his Firebolt for a turn flying around the lake before trying to return to his terrace. The sun was up in earnest by now, still no breeze. It was going to be a hot day. 

He flew over the top of where his terrace should be a couple of times before he realized that he couldn't find it. There was no terrace. In fact there didn't seem to be anywhere to land at all above Hagrid's hut. He gave up and landed at the entrance.

He found Ginny in the main hall, apparently playing tag with Peeves. As he drew closer, he realized they were throwing a small pink ball of some sort at each other. Ginny would throw it at the poltergeist and then run away. Then Peeves would follow her and throw it back. They stopped when they saw him. She gave Harry a bright smile and tucked the pink object in a pocket. Peeves floated over his head making a loud raspberry sound. 

"I was just going to come up and see if you were ready for some breakfast," she said. He told her all the news he'd learned eating breakfast with Hagrid as they climbed up to his tower room. 

Fawkes was sitting on the terrace when Harry arrived. He was rewarded with a sweet song as he stroked the beautiful phoenix's head. Fawkes had brought a note from Professor Dumbledore. He sent his answer back and turned to Ginny. "I have to meet Dumbledore in his office this morning. After that maybe we could have another picnic at the lake? Do you think Madam Pomfrey would let Ron, Hermione and Cho come with us? They could use some fresh air." 

Ginny watched as Harry sent the note. He seemed to be talking to Fawkes who was perched on the stone wall of the terrace. He was so comfortable with the phoenix. They looked so striking together, standing in the sunlight, the large red and gold bird and the tall, handsome young man with his messy black hair and green eyes. They're both rare,' she thought.

Harry seemed so relaxed this morning. Her heart swelled as she noticed how happy he looked. He was laughing as the phoenix took flight, then he turned to her and spoke. "What did you say, Harry? I was thinking about something," Ginny said. 

Probably Dean,' thought Harry as he could see that her eyes were glazed over and her expression was sort of dreamy. He repeated his picnic suggestion hoping that Madam Pomfrey wouldn't let the patients go so that he could spend this last day alone with Ginny. 

"Is that your box, Harry? The one with the carving?" she asked. He had left the box open on the desk, trying to unlock the mystery of its contents by staring at each object in slow deliberation. "Is it safe to touch these things?" Ginny remembered her father's warning when Harry had first opened the box. 

"Dumbledore checked them over for spells. He wasn't very specific. He just said they do have magical energy, but that I can handle them all I want. I've no idea what they are, really, or why they have been handed down over the years." 

As he spoke, she touched the cold black stone shaped like a phoenix. Then she held the large ruby up to the light. The gold, thick circular band was sitting on top of its purple pouch. When Ginny ran her finger gingerly over its polished surface, it disappeared from her sight and reappeared around her neck. She could feel the cold metal against her skin. 

Gasping in surprise, she asked, "What happened? What did I do?"

Harry gave a low, quiet laugh. "You didn't do anything. I'm sorry to shock you. I just wanted to see what it looked like around your neck." The two teens moved to the mirror in Harry's bedroom.

"I look like a Viking," she said with a laugh. "I'm not so sure this is meant to be a necklace, or maybe it's a necklace for a warrior, not a woman. It is so thick and heavy. It's too big for me. Why don't you try it on?" Harry was standing by her side with an odd, unreadable expression on his face as he stared at her smiling reflection. The gold band was too big for her slim neck. Without a word, the necklace disappeared from her neck and reappeared around Harry's.

"Ahthat's better. It does look better on you. Maybe it's meant to be around a man's neck," she said. Then an odd thing happened. The three small rubies embedded in the thick metal began to glow. "Uh, Harrywhat is going on? Are you making those stones light up?" Ginny asked. She was beginning to worry. 

Harry felt a surge of strength as the rubies lit up. "I'm not doing anything, Gin. But I can feel somethingit's not a bad feeling." He smiled, looking at himself in the mirror. Looking at Ginny, who was staring at him inquisitively, he decided to change the subject. "Well, I'm not walking around all day looking like a Viking either. Let's put all this away. I'll bet you're hungry." Harry went back to his desk and put away the mysterious items, closing the box with a thump.

When they walked back to the terrace, they saw that breakfast had appeared on the table. Either Harry has Conjured the food or Dobby was sneaky about it,' Ginny thought. 

They ate at a leisurely pace, talking and laughing about nothing in particular. "I'm going to miss this," Harry said. 

"What?" Ginny asked, surprised that Harry would remark on their time together. Maybe she misunderstood.

Harry could see the confusion crossing her face. He hadn't meant to make her uncomfortable. "Ahthese rooms. I'm going to miss having these rooms," he said, trying to cover his embarrassment.

"I'm looking forward to all my friends arriving today. In a way, it's too bad that we'll miss the Hogwarts Express trip this year, but I'm glad school is starting. If you stayed in these rooms, wouldn't you miss your roommates?" Ginny asked, not thinking about how that might sound to him. 

Harry didn't say anything. He knew she was thinking about one roommate in particular. He wasn't sure what to say. Now that the time had come, he wasn't sure he could stand to watch Ginny with Dean Thomas. It was one thing to keep telling himself that it was enough to be her friend, but he wasn't sure how he felt about facing the reality of her boyfriend. 

It suddenly hit him hard thinking of Ginny smiling her beautiful smile, laughing her beautiful laugh, biting her lower lip...with someone else. But she was here now, alone with him where she belonged. He reached over and offered her a small white lily that he'd Conjured, as he had so many times in the last month. 

Ginny took the flower and looked into Harry's face as he grew silent. He seemed to pull into himself. What was he worried about? Last year had been so difficult for him. Half the students at Hogwarts had treated Harry like he was a lunatic. They believed Cornelius Fudge and the Ministry of Magic's version of events, that Harry was a liar who invented Voldemort's return to the wizarding world to seek attention for himself. Some even believed that Harry was somehow responsible for Cedric Diggory's death. No wonder he was worried, thinking about all of that. 

"It's going to be a good year, Harry," Ginny tried to reassure him. "We're safe here at school. And everyone knows the truth about You-Know-Who now. No one will think any of that weird stuff that they thought last year. They all believe you now." She reached over the table and rubbed the back of his hand.

She could see the longing in his eyes as they searched her own without blinking. He wants to believe that what I'm saying is true,' thought Ginny. She said, "You have to believe me, Harry. Even at the end of last year, everyone had come around to the truth." 

Her face was full of sincerity as she looked deep into his eyes. Trance like, Harry reached up and tucked a stray strand of Ginny's hair behind her ear. He sighed and broke away from her gaze. Turning back to the breakfast, he said, "I guess we'll find out tonight." Keeping away from Ginny was going to take all the will power he could find.

****

When Harry met with Dumbledore in the morning before the picnic, the headmaster began by asking, "Have you enjoyed your private quarters, Harry? Has everything been satisfactory?" 

"I've enjoyed them very much, Professor. The view from the window makes it seem to be near Gryffindor and yetProfessor Dumbledore, I flew on my broomstick to visit Hagrid this morning and when I tried to fly back, I couldn't find the terrace? Is that particular tower invisible?" 

Dumbledore gave a small smile, his eyes twinkling. "You have discovered another of Hogwarts defenses, Harry. All of the exterior towers are unapproachable by broomstick. Even the towers that are visible have wards in place to prevent anyone from landing on the battlements or flying through an open window." He seemed proud that Harry had figured that out.

"I asked you to come see me for a reason, Harry. I want to discuss the coming year. You signed up for six classes which is fine. N.E.W.T. level classes all meet for extended periods of time. I understand your reluctance to continue studying Divination, but I've given some thought to how you might best fill out your day. I have a proposition. Of course, this is your decision to make." He stressed this last comment carefully, remembering how angry Harry was last year when all his choices were being made for him.

He held out a piece of parchment that appeared to be Harry's timetable for the coming term. "Our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher has requested an assistant. He's a busy wizard with some other important commitments." 

"He's Mad-Eye Moody," said Harry. Dumbledore's raised his eyebrows as if to ask for a better explanation. "I had tea and rock cakes with him this morning at Hagrid's."

"Ah...in any case, Professor Moody thinks you would make an able assistant which would free up his time when necessary. In return, he will continue to tutor you in Defense Against the Dark Arts as he did last summer. An assistant is more like an apprentice than a teacher. If you agree, this is what your timetable will look like."

He looked over his schedule. Defense Against the Dark Arts was listed every morning from nine to noon. Afternoons, he had N.E.W.T. level Herbology, Potions, Charms, Transfiguration, and Care of Magical Creatures. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 4:00 in the afternoon, he had fencing. At the same time on Tuesday and Thursday, he had Transfiguration Tutorial with Dumbledore. "When will I meet with Moody for Defense tutoring?" he asked. 

"When you least expect it," said Moody. "Ha! You didn't even know I was here, did you?" He seemed delighted with himself for sneaking up on Harry. "So what do you think, lad? Do you want to help teach Defense?"

Dumbledore could see Harry wasn't sure. "It would be much like your Defense group last year which you can continue this year if you like. Professor Moody would be teaching the classes and designing the lessons. You would be his assistant. It will give you an opportunity to step up your studies. Blocking out every morning for Defense will allow you to use that time flexibly. Sometimes you would be assisting in classes, sometimes working on your own Advanced Defense training." 

Moody added, "You may be good at Defense, but I can still teach you a thing or two."

Harry smirked and said, "I'll look forward to it, Professor." 

"I have one other motive in wanting you step up your Defense studies, Harry. Things are heating up in the war against Voldemort. While we have been successful recruiting new members to the Order of the Phoenix, we are also aware that Voldemort is gaining new recruits in his Death Eater ranks." He paused to see what effect this information had on Harry. 

The younger wizard was pleased that Dumbledore was willing to be honest with him this year. Maybe taking the Defense Assistant job would help him to become a bigger part of the fight. 

Dumbledore continued, "I want to bring you into the Order, Harry. I can't let you join officially until next summer when you turn seventeen, but it's quite possible that you'll become involved in Order business."

Harry smiled at the thought that Dumbledore had enough confidence in him to include him in Order business, maybe even send him on a mission. It felt good to have Dumbledore act like he could be trusted. He was trustworthy. He'd proved it time and again.

"So that's settled. As you can see, Harry, you have a very full schedule planned," Dumbledore said. 

"Plus Quidditch," Harry said. "I think I should thank you for the opportunity - both of you. Defense has always been my favorite class - except for last year. Then the D.A. really kept me going. Now I'll be able to play Quidditch and focus on Defense." The year was looking up. He couldn't wait to tell his friends. 

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation. Snape entered the room looking surprised to see Moody and Harry. "Ah, Severus, so glad you have returned. You're just in time to greet our new Defense Against the Dark Arts department. Alastor has agreed to take the post of Professor and Harry has agreed to be his assistant." Dumbledore had that trademark twinkle in his eye. Snape looked like he might be ill.

Since his friends were waiting, Harry excused himself and left the older wizards alone. "You don't seem too happy to see me, Sevvie!" said Moody, his magical eye spinning slightly mischievously. "Or is it Potter that has made you turn green." 

Dumbledore tilted his head back speculatively and looked at the two men through the little glasses on the end of his nose. 

Snape tried to look dignified as he took the chair that Harry had vacated. With a sniff he said, "I have to wonder what possessed you to make Potter an assistant. He's a poor student at best and walks the halls as arrogantly as his father. More special treatment for him will just make him that much more insufferable." 

"Are we talking about the same person? Harry, arrogant?" Moody growled his questions incredulously. "More like the noble, self sacrificing type, don't you think? Maybe you better take a closer look at the boy, Sevvie."

"At every turn, he thinks the rules don't apply to him. He breaks them whenever he feels like it. There's a rumor in my house that he roams the castle at night with an Invisibility Cloak. I assure you, he should be watched. And then given detent" 

Snape was warming to his subject when Dumbledore interrupted him. "At every turn, Harry shows himself to be someone who can overcome the obstacles in his life. He looks for ways to try to make things right, like running the D.A. last year."

Snape scoffed at the idea. "Potter just enjoyed breaking the rules by having a secret club and the other students blindly followed him. Then he took some of them into danger. Stealing the school thestrals, leaving the school grounds, breaking into the Ministry? All examples of more Potter rule breaking." 

"Severus, I am aware that your history with the boy hasn't been smooth, but surely you are more mature and generous in your opinions than to hold a grudge for mistakes the boy has made. We all make mistakes in life. Where would any of us be without being forgiven at some point?" He looked meaningfully at Snape. Without Dumbledore's forgiveness, he never would have had the opportunity to make up for the mistakes of his youth which were grave indeed. 

While the two wizards stared at each other, Moody said, "Ha...I've paid for the mistakes of my past and I'm here to help Potter learn from them. We don't know when he'll have to face your Dark Lord' again, but I want him to be ready." 

Looking at his hands which were clasped in his lap, Snape's jaw visibly clenched before he answered. "He's not my Dark Lord. I'll never serve him again. You shouldn't worry about getting Harry ready to face him. Harry should stay as far away from him as he can. He's no match for the powers of darkness."

"Sadly, we may not have that choice, Severus. If we don't help Harry now, we'll lose the chance." Dumbledore said. 

"And you think the answer is to burden him with all sorts of responsibilities. Quidditch Captain, Defense Assistant, these are big jobs. Aren't you worried he'll crack under the pressure? He looked like he was about to lose it last spring, even before the incident at the Department of Mysteries," Snape said, sounding smug. 

  
Dumbledore didn't answer at first. He was thinking about the mistakes he'd made with Harry the year before. Aloud he said, "I have faith in Harry. Entrusting these responsibilities to him will build his confidence. He may have a certain disregard for the rules. He may act rashly sometimes, but that's because he's young. Instead of antagonizing Harry, it's time to help him prepare."

****

Ginny and Harry did take the patients from the infirmary out to the lake for a picnic that day. Cho's brother Charles tagged along. Hermione and Ron were fit enough to return to the Gryffindor dormitory after the feast. Cho needed another week of intensive potions and rest so they all promised to arrange for her to get the work she needed, except Harry who promised Charles once again that he would keep his distance from Cho. 

Everyone was having such a good time at the picnic, just relaxing and having fun, Harry didn't get a chance to tell his friends about the Defense Assistant job. With Charles Chang there, giving him dark looks when Cho wasn't looking, he didn't know how to bring it up. 

The skies clouded over in the afternoon. By nightfall, the storm had progressed to a downpour. Regardless of the weather, everyone seemed in good spirits at the Welcoming Feast that evening. Harry and Ron sat together across from Ginny and Hermione as people began to filter in, dripping wet and shouting greetings to their friends. People looked so different. Two months apart had changed their appearances. Harry wasn't the only one who'd had a growth spurt. Many of them had new hairstyles. Seamus Finnegan had grown a scruffy looking beard. 

Harry received lots of double takes from passing students. They were used to his scar, but not his new look. Taller, more broad shouldered and wearing contact lenses instead of glasses, he also looked more relaxed and at ease than he had at the end of the last school year. 

Neville arrived with Luna. He said, "Hello, everyone! Why weren't any of you on the train?" 

For a moment, Luna looked like she'd wandered in accidentally. Then she noticed Ron talking quietly to Hermione. She smiled and said, "Did you hear? We found a Red-Feathered Bungbird's nest when we were trying to sneak up on a herd of Snorkacks! You do remember me telling you about that last June. Don't you, Ron?"

"Ersure, I remember. How was your trip?" Ron asked politely, looking embarrassed. Hermione didn't look happy. After a few more comments, Luna gave a brief wave and moved off toward the Ravenclaw table.

Harry and Ginny stifled their amusement and began a quiet conversation about the summer with Neville. He had a new wand. 

More and more people were filling the hall. Dean Thomas slid into the seat next to Ginny with a big smile. She smiled shyly back at him while Harry stared at his empty plate, suddenly really uncomfortable. 

Harry's heart was pounding so loud that he couldn't hear anyone talking. Why had he thought he could handle this? Right across the table from himthis was going to be a terrible year if he had to face them together every day. His mind was racing as he struggled to regain control of his emotions. This is what she wants,' he reminded himself. She should have anything that makes her happy. She deserves it.' He was still scowling at his plate. Apparently his internal monologue wasn't very convincing. 

"Harry, are you feeling all right? You don't look well." Hermione looked concerned. 

"I just need dinner. I'm fine," he answered. 

"I hear that. The Sorting always takes forever. They should feed us first," agreed Ron, even though he knew that his best friend's queasiness had more to do with watching Ginny and Dean conversing. Harry continued to stare at his empty plate. The conversation moved on to the topic of Dean Thomas' trip to France with his family over the summer. Harry was relieved not to be the focus of attention. 

The students were in their seats as Professor McGonagall, carrying a three-legged stool and the Sorting Hat, brought in the first year students. All conversation stopped during the Sorting. When the new students had joined their various houses, Dumbledore gave the signal for the feast to magically appear. Everyone was too busy eating for much conversation.

Eventually, Professor Dumbledore stood up and began the usual announcements. The Forbidden Forest is forbidden and so on. He introduced Professor Moody as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher and added, "...and Harry Potter will be Professor Moody's Assistant."

Harry looked surprised. He hadn't expected the Headmaster to make an announcement although now he could see that he should have expected it. Again the center of unwanted attention, Harry smiled modestly at his friends and faced his plate once more, ignoring the murmuring that was going on around them. 

"Why didn't you tell us?" asked Ron, obviously delighted for his friend. He'd grown up a lot since his days of being jealous of Harry for being a Triwizard contestant. "It will be just like the D.A. all year long!" 

Harry was relieved that Ron was taking it so well and said enthusiastically, "I'm not teaching. I'll be his assistant. We have a real Defense teacher this year. I'm looking forward to extra time working with Professor Moody. Defense is finally going to be a good class."

"Are we going to continue the D.A. this year, Harry?" asked Dean Thomas. 

Harry looked at him thinking that it was good that Dean had no idea how he felt about him at this moment. His eyes narrowed as he answered, "We probably won't start the D.A. until next month. We'll continue if enough people are interested." 

Without skipping a beat, Dean turned to Hermione and asked, "Hermione, would you still want to be in the D.A.? How about you, Ron?" 

They both nodded their heads, yes. Ron started to answer, "Offfkk eekk..." then stopped as Hermione looked disgusted at him for talking with his mouth completely full of food.

Looking across the table at Dean, Hermione said, "We'll all have to prepare for our N.E.W.T.'s. I, for one, am not taking these advanced classes lightly. Last year was difficult, but this year is going to be a real challenge. With Professor Moody and Harry teaching the Defense classes, we'll be able to practice some good skills in the D.A." She smiled at Harry proudly. 

Katie Bell came by. "Congratulations, Harry, Quidditch Captain and Defense Assistant. You're going to have a busy year." They talked about Quidditch for a while. 

Seamus said, "Puddlemere is having a good season. Did you get to any Cannons games, Ron?" Ron pointed to his mouth full of food and nodded his head at Hermione. Seamus turned to Dean and asked, "What's that team you're always talking about?"

"West Ham United, Seamus. You know perfectly well." Dean didn't look happy at his friend bringing up his favorite football team. 

"How is their season going?" asked Seamus, knowing the answer because Dean had been moaning about it on the train ride. "Didn't you say they had been regulated?"

"That's relegated, Seamus. Even though they have some great players, they were dropped to the lower league. Football is still a better sport than Quidditch," Dean said. Harry shook his head. No matter how many years they'd been friends, Seamus and Dean would never agree on this subject. 

Harry said to Katie, "Anyway, will you help me with the Quidditch tryouts in a couple of weeks? Ginny will make a good Chaser, but we still need to find another one. I am hoping the whole team will come to tryouts so we can see how the new people fit. Plus I think we'll take on some extra reserves this year so next year's team will be in good form. What do you say, Katie? Will you have the time to help? How 'bout you, Ron, Ginny?" 

They all agreed to help. As everyone rose to leave, Harry was struck by the idea that now that they were leaving the Great Hall, Dean and Ginny would be going off alone, probably for a quiet snog somewhere. Suddenly desperate at the thought, Harry blurted out, "Ginny, I need to talk to you about something. It's terribly important."

Ginny looked confused. Dean, Ron and Hermione looked at him like he was losing his mind. "Why can't you tell me as we head up to Gryffindor, Harry?"

He was stumped with that one. Ron jumped in, "Is this about the team, Harry?"

"Of course it is, Ron. I need to talk to you, too -- about Quidditch. We need to work out the practice schedule so I can book the pitch as soon as possible." Harry said, thinking that Ron was a genius. To the others, he said, "We won't be too long. We'll catch up to you later." 

"Except Hermione needs to know the practice schedule because she's a prefect, Harry," Ron said, thinking, I do think faster on my feet than I used to.'

Hermione didn't look convinced, but she smiled and said, "See you later, Dean."

When Dean was out of hearing distance, Ginny spoke, "What's going on, Harry? Since when do you need to consult us about the practice schedule? You know you already booked the pitch. You told us all about it during our picnic today." 

Harry's face was blushing bright red. He was silent. Then it came to him and he said, "There is something I couldn't tell you at the picnic because Charles Chang was there scowling at me. I may be able to work with the Order this year. Dumbledore told me he would like to bring me in on things. I just wanted you all to know. Of course we should keep it to ourselves." Ginny looked unconvinced. She had a nagging feeling that Harry had held her back for another reason. 

"What's the whole story, Harry? Why would Dumbledore let you in on the Order's business? You're only sixteen. Do you mean that you will go out on missions or something? When did you find out about this Defense assistant position?" Hermione started to fire off her questions in rapid succession. 

Ron realized that the real reason Harry had held them back from the Gryffindor crowd was to keep Ginny and Dean apart. He answered for Harry, "All will be revealed in good time. I'm sure Harry has lots of secrets he'd like to share. Let's get up to the dormitory and settle in." 

As Ron and Harry moved toward the staircase, Ginny grabbed Hermione's arm. "Could I talk to you for a minute?" she asked. "We'll catch up to you guys. Go ahead." 

The two girls stayed in the Great Hall talking quietly. Ginny asked Hermione what she should do about Dean. While she was sympathetic to Ginny's dilemma, she didn't offer a solution. Ginny was torn. Harry just wanted to be friends and Dean was so sweet. She just didn't return his feelings. 

To be fair to him, she decided to tell him how she felt right away. As soon as she returned to the common room, she asked to speak with Dean alone. 

Watching her go through the portrait hole with Dean in tow, Harry felt his heart plummet. Nothing would be the same now that school had started. He would never be alone with Ginny. She would always be pulling Dean off somewhere private so they couldit didn't bear thinking about. Remembering that she'd promised to use the mirror at eleven, he excused himself and went to bed early so he'd be alone if she called.

Ginny pulled Dean outside the portrait hole, but no further. They were alone in the empty corridor. He reached for her, but she stepped away. Gathering all her courage, she said, "We're like good friends more than anything else, Dean. We mainly talk about artwork and sketching. I do want to be your friend. I like you, but I just don't see us as a romantic couple." In her heart she'd always belong to Harry, whether he wanted her or not. 

Dean was upset. "I know I haven't been around much this summer. I could have written you more from France. I thought about you all the time. They had beautiful paintings there" His voice trailed off, realizing that he was beginning to discuss art with her again, sort of proving her point. "Give me a chance, Ginny. I really like you," he pleaded, taking her hand. 

She pulled her hand away and shook her head. "Goodnight, Dean." Ginny felt nothing but relief as she walked away. She wouldn't have to worry about hurting his feelings any more. Being honest felt good. If only she could be completely honest with Harry. But that would only spoil their friendship.

As he watched her go, Dean vowed not to give up. He would show her he could be romantic. He'd start tomorrow morning.

A/N: Hollow Godric deserves extra thanks for beta reading this chapter. I love Hagrid, but when he speaks — ARGH! So thanks, once again for all your help. 

I had to include the comment about West Ham United for my son who explains to me that the team's been relegated anytime I talk about writing this story. He's a big fan of the English Premiere League in general and Manchester United in particular. Seamus may not be sympathetic, Dean, but my son feels your pain.

Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	12. A New Start

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: I moved the notes to reviewers to the end of the story because I had so much to say. Thanks to everyone who reviewed! 

****

Chapter Twelve

A New Start

The following morning, bright sun streamed through the common room windows promising a fair weather start to the new term. Coming down the stairs into the light, Ginny held her head high with a confidence that she wasn't feeling. The girls in her dorm had blasted her decision to break up with Dean, calling her crazy for giving up one of the hottest blokes in the sixth year. 

Hermione had been more understanding, but even she seemed unsure. "I just want you to be happy, Ginny," she'd said. 

When they'd spoken through their little mirrors, Harry had been as agreeable as ever. The awkward subject of her break up with Dean never came up. Harry will hear it through the Gryffindor grapevine,' she thought. 

Turning these thoughts over in her mind, Ginny reached the Great Hall for breakfast. Pausing briefly near the Slytherin table, she knelt down to pull something out of her bag. Just then a loud noise was heard, drawing everyone's attention to the staff table. Peeves had knocked over a dish that crashed to the floor and shattered. The pesky poltergeist raced off toward the exit, cackling, while Mr. Filch stomped after him. 

Calmly sticking her hands in her robe pockets as they passed her, Ginny smiled and walked to the Gryffindor table to take her seat among the other fifth years as breakfast returned to normal. A few minutes later, as Professor McGonagall began making her way down the table, handing out the students' timetables, another disturbance occurred. 

A large pink cloud appeared over the Slytherin table near the entrance. For a moment, no one could see the students sitting there because the pink vapor was so thick. When the air cleared, the students who emerged were pink from head to toe. Their clothes were pink. Their hair and faces were pink. Laughter and applause rang through the Great Hall. Professor Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling on overdrive, but he maintained a calm expression.

Unfortunately, Professor Snape, who was handing out timetables like McGonagall, was also pink, hot pink, and very angry. Seething with rage, he said, "Whoever is responsible for this, come forward!" 

Not surprisingly, nobody moved. The only sound was another insane giggle from Peeves who made a brief reappearance before beating a hasty retreat. Faced with the Potion Master's anger, the students quieted down. Instead of laughing out loud, most were smiling down at their breakfast. Snape left the hall, taking the pink students with him, presumably back to the dungeons until the spell wore off. 

"Thanks for reminding me to bring my camera to breakfast, Ginny," said Colin Creevey. "That was lucky!" He patted his camera happily. 

It's a start,' she thought, as Luna Lovegood dropped into the seat next to her, throwing a bit of blank parchment onto the table. "Happy coincidence for someone that Snape was walking by at that precise moment," Luna said.

Ginny giggled softly then bit her lower lip. She tried to adopt an innocent look before her eyes shifted to the people around her as if she was gauging their reaction. No one was listening to them. 

Never taking her eyes off of her friend, Luna withdrew her wand from behind her ear and pointed it at a slip of paper. "_Engorgio! _" she said, sounding bored. The paper grew into the latest copy of the Quibbler. "I thought you might be interested in knowing that Stubby Boardman has disappeared. No one has seen him since last June. Do you still doubt that he and your friend Sirius are one and the same person?"

Ginny dropped her hands over the Quibbler, glancing around to see if Harry was anywhere near. "You have to promise me that you'll never mention this to Harry," she said. 

"All right. If that's what you wantbut why all the secrecy? Are we going on another mission?" Luna asked. 

Before Ginny could answer, they were interrupted by Neville quietly coughing behind them. Both girls looked up at the sixth year boy. He was shifting his weight from one foot to the other. He was red in the face and clearing his throat like he was working up the nerve to speak. 

"Do you need the loo?" Luna asked. Ginny turned her laugh into a cough and looked away. 

Neville held still, his eyes blinking. Swallowing hard, he looked at Luna and stammered, "Ilibrary." After a moment's pause, he added, "to study."

Luna smiled dreamily and said, "How about after dinner, Neville?" Looking relieved, he nodded and walked away. 

  
Hermione and Ron arrived together and sat across from Ginny. As Ron filled his plate with food, Hermione opened up her copy of The Daily Prophet. On the front page was a large photo of Professor Umbridge, her toad-like face simpering and smiling. "Have you seen this witch?" was written boldly underneath. According to the newspaper story, Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic, had tried to cover up her disappearance last July. She had last been seen talking to herself in the lobby of St. Mungo's.

Disgusted at the sight of her old Defense Professor, Ginny asked, "Why do you still take that rag, Hermione?" 

Pressing her lips together, Hermione said, "I like to keep up on things."

Ron leaned over her shoulder, and read aloud. "The Prophet on Prophecies. What modern British Divination experts are saying about your future? Rubbish, I say." Ron had decided to take Beginning Muggle Studies as an elective instead of continuing to take Divination.

Luna said, "The Quibbler ran a piece last month on how to tell if your Seer is really helping? It said Modern Divination is a misunderstood art." Everyone looked over at the dreamy-eyed Ravenclaw.

Hermione seemed surprisingly interested. "Well, after what we saw last June, we can't doubt that prophecies are real. What else did the article say, Luna?" she asked.

Nodding at Hermione's comment, Luna answered, "They interviewed some of the people who actually knew the Oracle of Bristol. They proved that the Oracle of Bristol was actually a witch kept under the influence of a potion that made her rant insanely. People were convinced that she could tell the future because her husband would charm them so what she prophesied would come true, at least some of the little stuff. Like she would say they would have an unexpected visitor that evening and he would make it happen. So word spread she could actually tell the future, for a price. It was all just a moneymaking scheme."

Firing her questions one after the other without waiting for a response, Hermione asked, "What about real Seers? Did the article have some modern day examples? How can you really tell if a prophecy is true? If they are true, are they inescapable?"

Looking up from his food, Ron looked incredulous. This was the girl who'd stomped out of Divination third year?

Luna answered enigmatically, "If a prophecy is real, perhaps it's not so much that it's inescapable, but that a prophecy could be interpreted in different ways. Some predictions are so vague that they only appear to have come true. Of course, the only real way to tell if a Seer is a fake is to tie a kangaroo in a sack using a rope made of the Seer's hair and see how high the kangaroo jumps." 

"And where are you going to get the kangaroo?" asked Ron, nodding his head as though he was sympathizing with her idea. Hermione elbowed him.

Ginny just stared at them all. She couldn't remember Hermione ever giving credence to something Luna had to say before. It was odd. She couldn't tell if her brother was really agreeing with Luna, or was just trying to mock her friend. 

Deciding that the prophecy discussion could only end badly, she tried to change the subject by reading another headline, "Should the Unforgivables be forgiven? What about this story? Fudge is thinking of authorizing the use of dark magic to his Aurors. That could change things." The others murmured their responses, presumably still lost in thought about kangaroos and prophecies.

Everyone startled as Harry's arm swooped over Hermione's shoulder to grab a few pieces of toast, muttering under his breath as he did. "Terrible day to oversleep. Can't believe I'm going to be late the first day." He smiled at Ginny as their eyes met and managed a civil, "Good morning, everyone," before disappearing as quickly as he had arrived. His robes flapped behind him as if he was being carried on the wind. 

Ron jumped up suddenly and said, "We'd all better go. Don't want to lose points in our first class." 

Hermione gulped down her pumpkin juice and tucked her copy of the Prophet into her bag. Terry Boot arrived behind her. "Can I walk you to Arithmancy, Hermione?" 

She looked nervously over at Ron before agreeing. After all, Ron was headed out to Muggle Studies in another part of the castle. "See you all later," she said softly. Ron hustled to follow them out of the Great Hall. 

With hundreds of teenagers living under the same roof, this year is never going to be dull,' thought Ginny. She didn't see Harry again until the evening. She went straight to dinner from Charms class with some of her friends. They sat near the staff table. 

When Harry walked into the Great Hall, his eyes scanned the Gryffindor table, looking for Ginny. He flashed her a bright smile when he caught her eye, but followed Ron and Hermione to some empty seats at the other end. 

Feeling disappointed, Ginny looked down at her plate. So much for him throwing himself at my feet,' she thought, not really listening to the story Colin was telling her about his summer. 

Glancing carefully through her lashes down the table at Harry, she was astonished to see Susannah Martin come up behind him. How did the biggest flirt in Hufflepuff even know Harry? The pretty, blonde seventh year girl had loosened her tie and undone the top few buttons of her uniform shirt. First, she laid her hand on Harry's shoulder. Then she leaned over him slowly. Harry looked up at the girl briefly, then stared determinedly at his plate. His face turned bright red. 

Hermione gave Susannah a disgusted look, while Ron just seemed amused. Ron's expression changed as he leaned in to say something to Harry, who turned and looked down the long table toward Ginny. 

Just as she noticed Harry looking her way, Ginny felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around, she looked up at Dean who smiled softly and offered her a single pink rose. "I charmed this so it would never wilt, Ginny. It'll stay fresh for as long as you want." 

She couldn't help but smile at his sweet gesture. Taking the flower, she said softly, "Thanks, Dean. But you shouldn't be doing things like this." She continued gently, "This doesn't change anything." 

"You can't blame a guy for trying," he said with a broad grin. "Can I sit down?"

Ginny nodded. The table around her was extremely crowded, but Colin moved over to make room for Dean.

Meanwhile, Harry, Ron and Hermione were having a conversation of their own. "Are you sure, Ron?" Harry asked, keeping his eyes fixed on Ginny as she smelled the rose in her hand. "She and Dean seem pretty together to me." 

Just moments before, Ron had watched his friend stare at his plate in embarrassment when Samantha had shown him a little cleavage. As she'd leaned over Harry, touching his shoulder, she'd asked, "Are you finished with that bowl of mashed potatoes, Harry? We're all out at the Hufflepuff table." 

Ron had thought it was pretty funny until he saw the look on Harry's face. That's when he blurted out that Ginny had broken things off with Dean the night before. 

The timing of Ron's announcement couldn't have been worse. The image of Ginny accepting the flower from Dean with a smile convinced Harry that, despite Ron's words, something was still going on between them. 

Seeing Harry's face fall, Hermione decided to try. "Appearances can be deceiving. Ginny told me last night that she told Dean she just wants to be friends." Harry just shrugged at her words, concentrating on his food.

Ron said cheerfully, "Ohthe old we can always be friends' line. Ouch. Well, I guess it's for the best." 

Harry's face masked his feelings. Refusing to discuss this subject any further, Harry asked, "Do either of you want to go to the library after dinner?" Of course, Ron scowled and Hermione smiled. 

*** 

So the new term began. The first month of school was unusually warm for Scotland. The leaves of the Forbidden Forest stayed green. The skies stayed blue. Hogwarts became a busy place as everyone settled into their autumn routine. 

Hermione was taking more classes than everyone else which made her happy. Harry worried that she might be too busy to help him research the contents of his carved box, but she had agreed enthusiastically. Feeling a little guilty about putting her to the trouble, he said, "You don't have to do this if you're too busy, Hermione. The book may not have anything important in it."

The carved box was a link to Harry's heritage. It was a part of his inheritance. She knew that he longed for information about his family. "I found a translation charm which seems to have workedalthough it had some minor problems," she announced.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, sounding worried. She handed him the book. It wasn't in the best of shape. Some of the pages were crumbling and missing. On the front, written in gold letters was "Myrddin's Torch" with a small gold drawing of a peculiar looking tree. It appeared to be a collection of poems, spells and drawings. 

"Some of the poems are cryptic -- almost riddles." Hermione explained exuberantly, her springy curls bouncing as she spoke. "The parchment is in such bad shape that some of the writing is unreadable. I guess the translation spell can't work if it can't make out the original meaning. It mentions places I've never heard of. Perhaps they are the old names. The book seems so ancient." Tsking and shaking her head, Hermione seemed lost in thought. She was really enjoying this. 

"Have you had time to read the translation? Is there any mention of a black phoenix? Or any of the other things that are in the box?" Harry asked. 

Her brow was furrowed in concentration as she explained, "Nothing in particular about a black phoenix, but there is one poem about a sword and another one that mentions all sorts of magical creatures that live in a forest. You found that sword in the place that's carved on the front of the box. It would seem to be linked somehow."

"I haven't touched the sword in a while. How much use can a sword be anyway? If I were to choose a Muggle weapon to defend myself, I'd choose a gun." Harry looked thoughtful. 

"Your sword seems more magical than Muggle, Harry." She paused to think before asking. "Don't you use your sword in your fencing lesson, Harry?" 

"We fence with an epee. It has a lightweight, thin blade. Dumbledore warned me not to use the sword from the cave for now. I guess he wants to check it out first," Harry answered, looking through the book at the translations. 

Her attention shifting back to the book, she said, "It's going to take a while to really look this over. I think we should start by cross-referencing the place names. We can find out what period of time this was written by identifying when those names were used for those places. There are two maps, one of Scotland and one of Wales. It's a start."

"You're so good at this, Hermione. I'd never've thought of that. Thanks," Harry said as they left the library.

****

Harry was working hard to prepare himself. No one ever spoke to him about Voldemort, but Harry could feel his presence. He was out there planning his next attack. Only Dumbledore and Ginny knew that Harry would eventually have to kill or be killed. Neither of them ever mentioned it to him, but the thought stayed fresh in his mind. 

So far, Dumbledore hadn't told him anything about the Order. Harry remained firm in his resolve to take charge of his future. He was going to make his own plans. He would do anything in his power to defeat Voldemort. Until that day, he'd never really be free to live his own life. 

His classes were demanding both physically and mentally. The fencing lessons had started off badly. He'd had no idea how much physical work went into fencing and Rhys Powell was a relentless instructor. After teaching Harry some basic moves in early lessons, they'd begun sparring. Harry always lost.

He wasn't fit enough to keep up with Rhys. While he had been in a routine of taking a morning run at the Dursleys, he had slacked off at the Burrow. He'd felt like he was on holiday while he was there. Despite the fact that Quidditch training was in full swing, he added an early morning run to his day to increase his fitness level for fencing.

Spending every morning with Mad-Eye Moody was a treat. Between teaching classes, Professor Moody would tell Harry all sorts of stories about his life as an Auror. He also was continuing to train Harry in stealth and protection. Most mornings, they had about an hour alone for practice and instruction. Unlike his predecessor, Moody never used class time to have students read the textbook. As his assistant Harry was able to fit in a fair amount of practice with the more advanced Defense classes. 

In addition to his own Defense training, Harry enjoyed teaching the younger students. Initially, working with them was weird. Some of them stared at his scar. Some of them called him Professor Potter. He laughed and said, "Just call me Harry. I'm an assistant. Professor Moody is your professor." 

Helping with the older classes was awkward. On Wednesday morning, the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff Defense class filed in. "Good morning, Professor Potter," purred Sarah Wildes. She was a fifth-year Hufflepuff and very mature for her age. Ginny was right behind her and gave him a sympathetic smile. Colin Creevey's camera flashed. 

Harry was saved from responding by Mad-Eye Moody calling, "Get to your seats! I'll take that camera, young man. Who gave you permission to take a photo here?" He opened the back of Colin's camera and pulled out the film in a rush of smoke. "From now on you will all be in your seats on time and ready. Believe me when I say, you all need to prepare. The forces of evil are gathering all around us. CONSTANT VIGILANCE is your only hope! Get your wands ready."

With a little help from Professor McGonagall, Ron was allowed to take N.E.W.T. Potions so Harry and he were taking all the classes they needed to become Aurors. Hermione was right; the advanced classes were really difficult. Ron and Hermione were in all of Harry's classes except Care of Magical Creatures. Since Hagrid was Harry's first friend in the wizarding world, Harry was glad to keep taking his class. He suspected that Ron dropped the course because Hermione wasn't taking it. 

Professor Snape was the same as he had ever been, putting Harry down every chance he got, and favoring the Slytherin students over everyone else. "Lowering our standards to include students who didn't make the grade doesn't mean I won't hold everyone here to the same high standards that my N.E.W.T. Potions classes have always maintained. If you can't keep up, then you will be out of this class. I suspect half of you will be gone by Halloween." 

Ron had received a high E on his Potions O.W.L. He deserved a chance to be here. But, Harry could just imagine what grade Crabbe and Goyle had received, and they were in the class. They were probably the reason that Snape had to relent and let Ron join. Harry continued his campaign of being extremely formal with Snape although he struggled to keep his composure in the face of the colossal unfairness of the man.

Harry and Ginny kept in contact with their double mirror. They had agreed to "meet at the mirror" every night around eleven. Harry loved the chance to have a few minutes relaxing and going over the events of the day. It helped clear his mind for his Occlumency exercises before he slept.

Harry was extremely grateful to be playing Quidditch again. Flying was fun. He felt like he was back in his element with the wind flowing around him. He was in charge in the air.

The Gryffindor team was coming together. A fifth year named Elizabeth Howe became the third Chaser. She, Katie and Ginny looked good, flying new formations to surprise their opponents. Ron was working with Kirke and Sloper to improve their aim with a Bludger. 

The extra bonus of Quidditch was watching Ginny fly. She never held anything back. She wore her hair pulled back in a ponytail that always came down before the end of practice. The sight of her long red hair wildly flying in all directions in the afternoon sun, the sound of her shouting and laughing with the other chasers, Harry just soaked it all in. She looked so happy and carefree. 

Ginny loved Quidditch practice, too. She loved to fly, and she loved to spend time with Harry. It was the perfect combination. Since school started, she hadn't seen as much of him as in the summer. Even though they sometimes studied or ate together, they were never alone. At Quidditch practice, she could count on being with him. 

After watching them during Quidditch practice one Sunday afternoon, Ron formed a plan. He'd already tried the direct approach, announcing to Harry on the first day of classes that Ginny had broken things off with Dean the night before. Unfortunately, due to Dean's untimely romantic gesture, Harry needed more convincing.

"Hermione, you know I'd do anything for you, right?" asked Ron in a whisper when the two of them were sitting in the library with Harry later that evening. Harry sat at the far end of the table, pretending not to notice that his two best friends were doing more canoodling than studying. "And we'd both do anything for Harry. Isn't that right?" he continued before letting her answer. Since he was so close to her ear, he gave it a soft kiss. One of her springy curls tickled his nose.

Puzzled, Hermione asked quietly, "Is there a point to this? Are you wondering about the contents of his wooden box? I haven't found anything about a Merlin's torch in any of the books I've read. And none of the poems in Harry's book say exactly what sort of torch it is. Just that the torch 'offers protection.' Or something like that. Is it a torch like a light on the end of a stick? Or is it a torch, like you 'carry a torch' for someone. Maybe it's just a metaphor. It could be anything. But since we have that essay due for Flitwick, I've been pretty busy lately."

"Metaphor," Ron repeated quietly. "You're so adorable when talk about schoolwork and stuff," he whispered in her ear giving her a couple more soft kisses on her neck just below her earlobe. Slowly breathing in the citrus smell of her shampoo, he said, "I know you've been busy. I wasn't thinking about any of that. I was thinking about Harry and Ginny. They deserve to be happy -- like you and I are. We should fix them up." 

Hermione's mouth dropped open. She turned and put her lips near Ron's ear so Harry wouldn't be able to hear. Breathing in his soapy scent, she said quietly, "Do I need to point out that Ginny's been surrounded by boys since she broke up with Dean?"

He answered in a low tone. "Exactly, Hermione. I'm the only big brother she has at Hogwarts now. I can't fight off the swarm of males circling around her single-handed. Besides what about Harry?" Ron tried to look the part of a concerned friend.

Hermione raised her eyebrows questioningly. Her answer was more like a hiss. "Harry seems fine with things. Obviously he's happy being Ginny's friend. And do you really think Harry needs us to fix him up? I'm pretty sure Harry could have his pick of the girls at Hogwarts. Don't you notice how they all try to flirt with him? Even the little first year girls give a sigh as Professor Potter' passes by them. He's the biggest heartthrob since Lockhart." 

"Watch this one, Ron." Hermione was pointing subtly at the approaching figure of Hannah Abbott who dropped her book behind Harry. Still breathing into Ron's ear, she quietly commentated. "Now watch as she bends down, then flips her hair back while flashing a sweet smile, a very impressive combination, Miss Abbott." Without speaking, Harry smiled politely at Hannah, stood up and went to search for a book on a far shelf.

Smiling at Hermione's rare moment of levity, Ron said mysteriously, "I think there is a big reason that Harry doesn't flirt back." Ron began nuzzling her ear and again putting light kisses down her neck toward her buttoned up collar. She was finding it hard to concentrate.

Hermione's forehead knitted into a little frown and her eyes narrowed. "You don't mean?" she began.

"Don't mean what?" asked Ron. "It's obvious to me. Harry already has someone on his mind, someone unavailable." 

She looked confused. "Cho? You mean Harry is waiting around for Cho because we all know her brother threatened him to stay away from her? Of course, that's it. Harry is pining away for Cho Chang just like last year," she said, satisfied that she had figured it all out. 

Ron looked at her incredulously. "What happened to Hermione knowing all the answers? You used to be right about everything. Is it my kissing? Does snogging scramble your brain." He smiled at the thought before he continued, "Harry hasn't fancied Cho since last year. Nah...she's out of his system. It's someone else, a close friend of his." Speech over, he went back to snuggling into her neck.

Her mouth dropped open in shock. "You don't mean me. Do you, Ron? Harry did stare at me all during Defense class last week." Ron shook his head and Hermione's eyes widened. "Not you?"

He rolled his eyes. In a low voice he said, "Your brains are jumbled. It's Ginny. Harry fancies Ginny. Remember how they were at the Burrow? It's only been a month. You should have seen him at Quidditch practice today. He was explaining the new Waverman maneuver to the Chasers. He stopped in mid speech, and stared at Ginny while she pulled her hair up into a ponytail. He just stopped talking and stared. We had to call him back to the real world. Am I really the only one who sees it?"

Ron paused to see what effect his words were having on Hermione. She seemed lost in thought for a moment, twisting a lock of her hair around her index finger unconsciously. Then she looked at him and said, "I thought the same thing when we were at the Burrow, then so many things happened and nothing ever came of it. When you think about it, they always seem to know everything about each other. Couldn't you just talk to Harry?" 

"And say what? He'd just change the subject. As long as Dean is hovering around Ginny, Harry will do the noble thing and stay away. He won't put any moves on her unless he's sure it's the right thing." Ron was satisfied that he had brought Hermione to this stage in his logic. It had been surprisingly difficult. 

"Does Harry have any moves?" Hermione asked, smirking apologetically. "Remember the Cho Chang incident?"

Ron grinned and asked, "So you think I should show him some of mine?" He gave her a dark look that was meant to be sexy and provocative. She giggled. 

Taking that as a no, Ron cleared his throat and looked normal again. Looking around to make sure Harry was still across the room, he continued, "So now we just need to find someone who does fancy Dean. He'll leave Ginny alone and Harry can ask her out and they can live happily ever after -- except for the whole You-Know-Who wanting to kill him thing."

"Meddling in other people's lives is a bad idea, Ron. You should know better," said Hermione. 

"We aren't meddling. We're helping. Helping Dean. Helping Parvati. Helping Harry and last, but not least, helping my sweet sister," said Ron. 

"You've already given this a lot of thought, Ron. Wait, how did Parvati Patil get into this conversation?" Hermione asked. 

"Just think about all of this Hermione. Watch everyone at dinner tomorrow. You'll see. Now maybe we should find someplace where we won't be interrupted -- someplace where I can confuse you some more. I think I like being the smart one for a change," Ron said stroking her cheek and gazing into her beautiful brown eyes. 

Hermione melted. Her misgivings about meddling forgotten with the feel of his rough hand on her cheek. They left to find an empty classroom. 

***

At dinner the following day, Hermione planned to do as Ron had suggested. She arrived early and situated herself toward the center of the Gryffindor table so she'd get a good view. She propped her Charms book against a serving dish full of carrots so she could pretend to read while she spied on everyone. No one showed for a long time. 

Finally Dean came in with Seamus and Neville. Neville was saying "As soon as the _Arabidopsis Malapropria_ flowers in the spring, we can use the" His voice trailed off as their group passed by. The trio found seats at the far end of the table near the teachers.

Ginny came in next, laughing at something Colin Creevey was saying. Without even a glance toward Dean's end of the table, she sat down with Hermione. Ignoring the fact that her friend was obviously reading a textbook, she said, "Colin was just telling me the funniest story. Seems that Jacob Henderson was "

Hermione wasn't listening to her. Ron had arrived asking, "Where's Harry?"

Putting carrots on her plate, Ginny answered, "His fencing lesson ran late today. He should be here soon." She didn't explain how she would know. Ron arched an eyebrow at Hermione knowingly. 

****

"Had enough?" Harry asked. Breathing hard with the effort, he parried and thrusted toward his fencing instructor. Their practice sessions were lasting longer and longer, sometimes ending in a draw. Rhys laughed at Harry's suggestion. 

"Why should I concede when I have you retreating?" he asked, as he attacked Harry with renewed energy forcing him to back up. Seeing an opening, he lunged at Harry. His thrust should have ended their duel. Instead Harry nimbly leapt out of the way and with a quickly placed flick of his epee, he yanked Rhys' weapon away from his hand by the handle. It clattered across the floor.

Holding his own weapon to his instructor's throat, he asked, "Do you yield?" with a grin. He had only won a handful of matches against the young Welshman. 

"I yield," said Rhys, shaking his head. "You tempted me by appearing to let down your defenses, very good. You're improving. Tomorrow we'll switch to broadswords. You're ready for a new challenge." 

"Thanks! I'll look forward to that." Harry undid the first few buttons of his fencing jacket. The high neck always bothered him. The lightweight fabric was enchanted to shield against accidental cuts of their swords. It was all white and fit snugly, tunic style over white pants. Glancing at the clock, Harry said, "I'd better hurry if I'm going to make it to the Great Hall before they stop serving dinner. Thanks for everything, Mr. Powell."

"Call me Rhys!" the instructor called after Harry's retreating figure.

Harry was delighted to find his friends all sitting together in the Great Hall. Before showering and changing into his uniform, he'd called Ginny to let her know he'd be late, hoping that she would take the hint and wait for him. As he walked in, he imagined what it would be like to walk up to Ginny, cover her eyes and say, "Guess who?" Then he could kiss her cheek and she'd. He stopped himself, deciding he should just be glad that she wasn't sitting with Dean. Her eyes met his.

Watching Harry stride purposefully into the Great Hall, Ginny noticed he had a small smile on his face as he kept his eyes on her. Between Quidditch practice and fencing, Harry was looking fit. Ginny wanted to run her fingers through his damp hair. She shook that thought off, glad that no one could read her mind. He stopped beside her.

"All right there, Harry?" said Lavender Brown from behind him, her voice purring like a cat. He turned to see Lavender and Parvati. Lavender was leering at Harry. She looked him over; taking in the fresh from the shower thing he had going on. Parvati was trying to look around him toward the people sitting at the end of the table. 

Harry smiled at the two girls and said their names in greeting before turning his attention back to Ginny. 

"When's the first D.A. meeting, Harry?" Lavender asked, still blatantly looking him up and down. 

"There's a notice on the board," he answered, taking his seat next to Ginny. "We'll meet this Wednesday at seven in the Room of Requirement. Hope you can make it."

Parvati pulled on her friend's arm and said, "C'mon. Seamus is down on the end." Obviously, so was Dean.

"Ron, you're really gifted," whispered Hermione as her dormmates walked away. She had taken in every nuance of the dinnertime interchange. "Only one thing I don't understand. How did Ginny know that Harry's fencing lesson ran late?"

Ginny blushed and looked away. Hermione might have been whispering, but they could all hear her. Helping himself to steak and kidney pie, Harry said, "All the Weasleys are gifted. Ginny has the gift of sight. She's a true Seer." He knew she was about as good at Divination as he was. If Ginny had still been looking, she would have seen Harry smiling shyly in her direction, his face clearly showing his admiration.

Realizing that she'd embarrassed Ginny, Hermione said, "Yeah, that must be it." The look on Harry's face wasn't lost on her. A quick plan had formed in her mind and she changed the subject. "So Harry, Ginny, do you want to go to Hogsmeade with us? The first Hogsmeade weekend is this Saturday. What do you say? We'll go as a group unless you already have plans."

Ron was looking at her, puzzled by her sudden idea. Then he caught up and added, "What a great idea! Ginny and I should really check out Zonko's latest for Fred and George. Here's our chance to spy on their competition. Harry, you're their financial backer so, of course, you'll want to help. It'll protect your investment."

Now it was Harry's turn to be confused. Ron had been telling him that he was looking forward to going to Hogsmeade so that he could have his first real date with Hermione. Now he was begging Harry and Ginny to come along. Dean would probably want to come too. The thought of going to Hogsmeade tagging along with two couples was too much for him. He blurted out, "What about Dean?" Then he turned his attention abruptly back to his dinner, stabbing a piece of treacle tart a little more forcefully than was necessary.

Ginny wasn't much better. She was shocked, first by Hermione's sudden desire to include them on what she had been calling her "first real date" with Ron, then by Harry mentioning Dean. She thought, Maybe he's sick. He does look a little flushed. Maybe it's his scar.'

Her concern for him overtaking her other thoughts, she leaned toward Harry and asked softly, "Are you feeling all right?" She rubbed his upper back as she spoke. 

Harry stiffened at her touch. He just wasn't expecting it. Growing up with the Dursleys, he had never been accustomed even to casual touches. Maybe that's why her simple gesture of concern felt like it was sending waves of pleasure down his spine. He held utterly still hoping she'd never stop, but self-consciously wondering if everyone could tell how she was affecting him. 

When her hand dropped away, Harry looked up into her face. A tender look crossed his features before Harry regained control. He swallowed hard and said, "Thanks, I'm fine. Just tired, I guess."

None of this went unnoticed. Ron nodded to Hermione as if to say, told you so.' She made a face at Ron, then asked Ginny, "Why would Dean mind if you go with us?"

Looking a little confused, Ginny answered, "It's none of Dean's business what I do. I'd like to go, but only ifwell, Harry, is that what you want to do?" She tried to sound casual, like the plan was no big deal. 

Harry hadn't taken his eyes off of her. His face broke into a smile at the thought of a day spent with Ginny. He nodded his approval before rising to leave. "Until Saturday," he said.

****

To be continued

A/N

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Nightwing 509: Thanks for reviewing. I'll keep trying to update frequently!

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Lourdes: Thanks for all of your comments! Those are all really good questions. You are a good guesserHarry will be forced to explain about Cho in an upcoming chapter, but not before some other things happen. Can you really blame Harry for thinking the worst? Nobody could be as thick as Ron was about Hermione. Hermione is having difficulty concentrating. Ron is a bit of a distraction to her. I think this chapter will explain some things. At least I hope it will. 

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athenakitty: Thanks for reviewing! The Dursleys are really background characters in this fanfic. Beyond the first chapter, they are not a part of the action. Yes, Moody will eventually sneak up on Harry more than once. Cho is a year ahead of Harry so she's a seventh year. 

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Junior1544: Thanks for spending your morning reading and then reviewing! I'm glad you like the thing about Harry and Ginny holding back because they both think the other one just wants to be friends. I've seen it happen in real life more than once. Good suggestion on how to have Ginny get a clue. Harry's life is complicated. Trouble will find him wherever he is. Moody is Harry's only Defense teacher in this story, but he does have time alone with him every morning. I figure the classes last for one or two hours leaving Harry and Moody at least an hour alone together. Because Lupin is Harry's new guardian, he will be involved, just not on a daily basis. Due to the life Harry leads, they will be in contact with each other more than most Hogwarts parents. Have I said too much? 

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Jade: Thanks for you nice comments. I will try update soon!

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PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: Ron had to wise up sometime Thanks for reviewing! 

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kmagarden: Hello again! It's nice to hear from you as always. Good to know the don't want to ruin the friendship' scenario rings true with you. Anyway, it's fun to write. Soon they will get a little help from their friends. Also with all his friends helping, Harry will figure out what he's inherited in the box. Then he has to think about what to do with it

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	13. Nothing More Than a Murderer

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Notes to reviewers are at the end because I wrote so much. I'm finding that I really look forward to what everyone has to say. You've all been kind. Thanks to everyone who reviewed!

Chapter Thirteen

Nothing More Than a Murderer

Saturday couldn't come soon enough for Harry -— a whole day with Ginny away from Hogwarts. Maybe it wasn't a real date since they were going in a group, but just thinking about it made Harry walk a little taller. Unfortunately, he did have to get through the rest of the week first. It seemed to last forever.

On Tuesday, Professor Snape took twenty points from Gryffindor and gave Harry a detention when Crabbe's cauldron exploded. He claimed that Harry had thrown something into it from across the room. Ron's protests of Harry's innocence fell on deaf ears and cost Gryffindor ten more points.

At least the class was dismissed early due to the expanding blue goo that the blast had randomly spread to many corners of the room. The bright blue gobs were not harmful to humans, but the room temperature would have to be reduced to several degrees below freezing in order to stop its expansion before it could be disposed of properly.

"Awrotten luck, Harry," Ron said as the Gryffindor trio walked hurriedly away. "How could he blame it all on you? Even if you'd wanted to cause trouble, you weren't anywhere near Crabbe." 

Hermione was fuming as badly as Ron was now that they had left the Potions room. "How could Snape even let Crabbe in the N.E.W.T. Potions class? He doesn't know what he's doing. He could cause some real damage considering the potions we're working on." 

"And you're the best judge of that, are you?" a familiar voice drawled behind them. They stopped and turned to face Malfoy. With a satisfied sneer, he continued, "At least he wasn't raised by Muggles." He looked both Harry and Hermione up and down meaningfully. 

Standing in their customary places flanking Malfoy's side, both Crabbe and Goyle were nodding in agreement. The sight would have been more intimidating if bits of bright blue goo weren't still clinging to their hair and clothing.

A quiet snicker escaped from Ron. Harry and Hermione were having better success stifling their smiles. With a smile, Ron pointed to the two hulking Slytherins and said, "Looks like you two missed a few spots."

Fixing a hateful glare at Ron, Malfoy asked, "Think you're funny, Weasley? Everyone knows you went crawling to McGonagall to get into Potions this year." 

Malfoy's words might have stung if Ron weren't so distracted by the sight of Vincent Crabbe who seemed unaware that the sticky blue potion was now completely covering his hair. Trying to keep a straight face, Ron ignored Draco and said, "Crabbe, you really have to give me the recipe. It could make a great gag gift. We could make a little money."

Malfoy's eyes narrowed. "You'd like that, wouldn't you? Might make a couple of Galleons. Double your family's income." 

Noticing that one of the blobs on Goyle's broad shoulder had dripped onto Draco's immaculate robe where it continued to enlarge, the Gryffindors all broke out laughing. Ron continued to mock them. "Speaking of doubling. It's the Potion that ate Piccadilly! Run for your lives." Pulling on Hermione's arm, he turned away from the Slytherins. They gave into their laughter as they hurried away. 

Reaching the main entry, Hermione asked, "Well, what do you want to do with a whole hour of unexpected free time?" She was looking longingly at the doors leading outside.

From the expression on Ron's face, Harry was glad his friend wasn't saying aloud what he was obviously thinking would fill the hour. "Yes, wellthere are a few things I want to look up in the library. I'll see you two later," he said and turned to leave.

"Ohthat reminds me," said Hermione, pulling a large, slightly scuffed book from her bag,_ Historical Myrddin: Separating Fact from Legend_. "I bookmarked some passages about the life of Merlin. Thought you might like to read it." 

Harry took the book from her and muttered his thanks before going to the library by himself. Very few students were in the library at this hour. Most students were in class. Ignoring the disapproving stare of Madam Pince, Harry opened the book to Hermione's bookmarks and was soon engrossed in reading about Merlin. 

A loud thunk broke his concentration. "What's so interesting, Harry?" asked a sweetly familiar voice. 

Smiling even before he looked up, Harry replied, "Shouldn't you be in class, Miss Weasley?" Her arrival was like a warm breeze blowing through the library, bringing a fresh scent and a bit of warmth. 

She smiled, too, and sat down across from him. "Well, yes, Professor PotterI guess I should be in class, but since Professor Flitwick was called away to a rather spectacular Potions problem, class was dismissed early. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

Harry shook his head. "Snape gave me detention for it. I had nothing to do with it. It would have been physically impossible for me to add whatever he said I addedanyway, he just likes to make my life harder. But, you know, right now it seems more like he did me a favor." His voice trailed off as he realized what he had been about to say. "I meanextra time for research and all." He briefly lifted the book he was reading.

"Interesting book, then?" Ginny asked, biting her lower lip. 

"Very," Harry answered, forcing himself to stare at the words on the page, although their meaning escaped him just now. It was hard to ignore the utterly charming expression on her face.

"Myrddin?" Ginny asked, tilting her head slightly to read the title on the cover. She laid her hands flat on the table in front of her. "Anything about a torch?"

He swallowed hard. "Nothing. But he led a long and interesting life. Apparently, he could talk to his owl." Harry didn't feel like reading any more. He closed the book and set it aside. Leaning toward Ginny, he covered her hands with his.

The gesture felt so natural, yet it startled them both into silence. They both were still for a moment while green eyes smiled into sparkling brown. Ginny recovered first. "And he had an interesting death, too, as I remember," she said. 

It took a moment for Harry to remember what they were talking about. "OhI don't think I've read that far. I don't remember how he died." Puzzled, he let go of her hands and reopened the book.

"Well, he didn't. At least no one knows for sure if he did." Sighing, Ginny pulled her own schoolbooks out of her bag and reached back in for parchment, quill and ink.

Harry pondered what she'd said. If Merlin were alive, someone would surely know about it. Watching Ginny start looking through her Charms book, he asked, "What happened to him? Do you mean he might still be alive?" 

She looked speculatively at Harry. Of course, he wasn't raised in the wizarding world so he didn't know much about the legends and myths that were common knowledge to her. She smiled affectionately and answered, "It was so long ago that people assume he died. I mean, he must have -- old age and all. But the legend says that he was tricked by a beautiful young enchantress. Her name was Ninianne. She convinced him to teach her all of his magic and then she used it to trap him in a cave or something." She stopped and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Or was it an island draped in fog, lost in the mist? Oh, I don't remember the particulars. I'll bet it's in your book."

"So far, I've read about the early years when Merlin went wild and lived in an enchanted forest somewhere in Scotland. Hey, maybe it was Hogwart's own Forbidden Forest."

"You have a good imagination, Harry," Ginny said, scribbling something on her parchment, then nibbling thoughtfully on the end of her quill. 

Harry was quiet for a moment, then said slowly, "So someone was able to rid the world of the greatest, most powerful wizard that ever lived simply by trapping him — putting him in a prison of sorts." 

Ginny put her quill down and sighed. "Oh, Harry. I see what you're getting at." She gave him a sympathetic look. In a whispered voice, she said, "But the prophecy says, neither can live while the other survives.' It doesn't sound like trapping You-Know-Who will be enough." 

Staring down at his hands, he said, "It was just a thought, Ginny. I don't want to be a murderer. Even if it's Voldemort." He looked, as he so often did, as though the weight of the world was on his shoulders. 

Repeating his earlier gesture, she reached out and put her hands over Harry's. "I know, Harry. Maybe you should ask Dumbledore what he thinks." 

"Dumbledore! Oh, no I forgot. I have his Tutorial at four. I'll see you later." Harry jumped up. Looking regretfully at Ginny, he stuffed the book in his bag and left in a hurry.

****

The following evening, the first D.A. meeting brought twice as many students together as the year before. Harry, Hermione and Ron arrived at the tapestry of Barnabus the Barmy and walked back and forth, thinking of a place to meet. When the door appeared, they discovered that the room had all the same appointments, the Defense books and Dark detectors were all in place, but the room had doubled in size. As seven o'clock approached, people began to filter in. Those who had been in the D.A. the year before were amazed at how the room had changed. 

"Hermione, you did put the message on all the House boards, didn't you?" Harry asked. "I was sure there'd be more people from other houses than this." They'd decided to open up the club to any student fourth year and above.

"I'm sure the notices went up on all the house notice boards, Harry. I gave them to the prefects to post. There must be twice as many people here as last year," she said with satisfaction. 

Harry was still preoccupied. "I thought there'd be more Slytherins," he said simply.

"Why would you care, Harry? Why would we want a bunch of bloody-minded Slytherins hanging out in the D.A.? Good riddance, I say." Ron was never too keen on anyone from the dungeons. 

"Ron, how can you say that? Not all Slytherins are bad, just like not all Gryffindors are good. Remember Peter Pettigrew? You can't judge a person by their house affiliation," Hermione said. She was always glad to champion a tolerant attitude.

With an air of finality, Harry said, "Both of youquiet down. They'll hear you. I want everyone to feel welcome. The D.A. is for all Hogwarts students. We're all in this together. Remember what the Sorting Hat has been saying? I think the warning is about just this sort of thing. We need to learn to trust each other despite our Houses. This is a chance to at least try."

Ron looked a little chagrined. He knew his friends were right. At least there was no sign of Malfoy or his goons. 

In fact, it seemed like no one from sixth year or above in Slytherin House was there. Most were fourth years that Harry recognized from Defense class. 

Clearing his throat, Harry said, "Good evening, everyone. Let's get started, shall we. Welcome to the D.A. For those of you who don't know me, I'm Harry Potter. A group of us started this club last year because we felt that it was important to practice our defensive skills. Even though we have a decent Defense Professor this year, we hope to keep our skills up by extra practice. Anyway, we can have a little fun and maybe learn some things we don't have time for in our defense class. How does that sound to everyone? Are there any questions?" 

A short blonde girl raised her hand, "I read that you fought He Who Must Not Be Named and escaped when you were my age. Is that true?" 

"Yes, everything you read in the Quibbler about me is true." He could see Luna nodding proudly. 

Zacharias Smith raised his hand, "I heard you took a group from last year's D.A. to fight Death Eaters at the Ministry. That was in the Daily Prophet. Was that true?" 

Harry hadn't been expecting a reminder of last June's events. He stared at Zach for a little too long, so Hermione responded for him. "Really Zach, you could ask about that anytime. Why bring that up now?" 

"I'm just wondering why he didn't take the rest of us. We all worked hard. We were ready to fight," Zach said. 

The crowd murmured. Several of last year's members were nodding their heads. Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. Did they really think they'd missed out on a great adventure? They felt left out? He didn't know what to say.

Ron said, "Well, we didn't take everyone. It's too late to do anything about that. Let's get started on what we are going to do tonight. Harry?" All heads turned to Harry expectantly at this comment. Ron's height and broad shoulders gave him a natural air of authority. 

Harry began taking them through the lesson that he had planned. He split them into two groups and demonstrated briefly. The younger students began practicing _Protego!_ while he worked on teaching the older students a rather advanced Disillusionment Charm. 

Working his way around the room, checking on their progress, he came across a girl with soft, shoulder length brown hair and bright blue eyes who didn't have a partner. Looking across the room, he spotted Neville who seemed happy to be paired with Seamus. They were standing near Luna and some Ravenclaw fifth year that Harry didn't recognize. Last year it was Neville who often needed a partner, but his new wand and hard working attitude had finally paid off. "I guess you're with me," Harry said to the girl standing alone.

"Just my luck," she said with a smirk. "Defense isn't my best subject. I'm hoping that this group can help me improve." Her voice had a light, lyrical accent that Harry thought might be Irish.

"Let me know what I can do," Harry said. She could tell that he meant that. "What's your name?" he asked. 

Surprised, she answered, "Oh, it's Sophie, Sophie Moon." She looked a little uncomfortable. 

Harry wondered briefly what could be wrong before he smiled at her and repeated the instructions for the Disillusionment Charm. "In some situations being able to disguise yourself, even for a little while, could save your life. This spell is difficult to keep in place when someone is throwing hexes at you. It takes a fair amount of magical energy. Also any move you make could reveal your location. You'll look like a ripple of water —- only in the air." 

They settled in to practice. Harry worked with Sophie for a while, and then asked Parvati and Lavender to trade off practicing with her while he wandered around the room to check on other people. 

Everyone was working hard, but it was a difficult spell to master. Some would only appear to flicker as they cast the Disillusionment Charm. Others could cast the charm, but not hold it when pressed. Ron was defeating Hermione easily. She would cast the charm to blend into the background, then reappear quickly the moment he cast his Revealing Spell. She was becoming frustrated since she was usually really good with charms. 

"Try pairing with someone else for a while, Hermione," suggested Harry, thinking that maybe working with Ron was ruining her concentration. Ron could already cast the Charm and hold it briefly so Harry asked him to move around the room in the opposite direction to see how everyone was doing.

"What good is this spell when you're fighting a duel, Harry?" asked Zach Smith. "I can't imagine that a simple concealment spell will be convincing enough or last long enough to work during a real fight." 

"Maybe not, Zach. But sometimes, it isn't smart to fight. If you know you can't win, it's better to get away and fight another day. Hiding, or even making it more difficult for your enemy to see you, can make escape possible." Harry tried to be patient with the irritating blond boy. They all needed to find a way to get along. Besides, maybe he didn't mean to be so annoying. Maybe he was just the sort of person who said the first thing that came into his head all the time. 

"I think I'm ready to fight, Harry. Next time you need someone to go on a mission, be sure you let me know. I'm your man," Zach said.

Harry was stunned speechless, thinking, I don't want anyone to be my man. I'm not planning a mission. On the other hand, he's a Hufflepuff. Of course he's loyal. What else would you expect?'

The blond boy was holding his breath looking at him expectantly. Harry said, "Thanks, Zach. I appreciate it. Let's hope it never comes to that." He extended his hand. Zach shook it and smiled. 

Harry moved on through the crowd of students. Some were getting the hang of the spell. There was a whole lot of giggling going on with the younger group. While they were practicing_ Protego!_ with some success, the spell they were trying to deflect was the tickling spell. If their protection worked and the spell rebounded, then the spellcaster was hit with the tickles. Either way someone was giggling. 

Laughter is contagious, so even the older kids left feeling like they'd had a fun evening although everyone had worked hard. At the end of the session, several students stayed behind to help stack pillows along the wall. Among them were Ginny, Dean and Cho. Harry noticed that Dean never left Ginny's side. 

Cho came over to Harry. Almost a month of school had passed without him so much as looking her way. Yet, she'd noticed that he didn't seem to have an interest in anyone else. She'd begun to think he was secretly pining for her and was staying away because of her brother. She had to find out.

She cleared her throat nervously and said, "Thanks for showing us that spell, Harry. I'm glad the D.A. is going to continue. It would have been good last summer if I'd known how to hide myself." 

He was a little surprised that she was speaking to him. "Don't blame last summer on anyone but Voldemort, Cho. If not for him, we wouldn't need to know how to conceal ourselves." Harry picked up some books that were lying on the floor and slowly put them back on the bookshelf. He was half hoping that Cho would just quietly slip away while he was preoccupied, but she waited patiently until he finished. 

There were still a few people in the room with them. Cho was looking at him intently. He asked politely, "Is there something else on your mind?" 

She blushed and looked at the other people in the room. They were all out of hearing distance. She leaned toward him and said, "I want to talk to you alone, Harry." 

"We can't be alone, Cho. I promised your brother. I intend to keep that promise. You probably shouldn't even be coming to D.A. meetings. It's not safe for you to be near me." Harry looked genuinely concerned. 

"But, Harry" Cho began. 

"Just, please forget it," he said, not so politely. With that, he walked away and out the door without saying goodnight to anyone. It was too depressing to think about. Anyone he ever dated would be a target for Death Eaters. It just wasn't fair. 

Getting back to his room, he pulled out his planner that promptly sang to him that he shouldn't put off reading his Transfiguration book since he needed to prepare for class tomorrow. 

Thankful that he was alone for once in the dormitory, he stared at the book for a long time, thinking over the D.A. meeting. Ginny and Dean had partnered. She was much better at charms than Dean. Her Disillusionment Charm held up as long as Hermione's, well, once Hermione moved away from Ron,' he thought, feeling oddly proud of both of them. Ginny had been friendly to Harry as he passed by; but she had spent the whole evening with Dean. Even though she denied it, there must still be something between them. 

Shaking off this depressing thought, he settled in to read his book. He forced himself to focus on the subject of transfiguring plants into common household objects. He became so engrossed in the subject that he startled when he heard his name being called. It was Ginny's voice. He smiled and answered his mirror. 

"How are you tonight, Ginny?" he asked. 

They settled in to discuss the events of the day. She'd had Magical Creatures class and had been dismayed to find that Hagrid had found and captured a small flock of Swoopers in the Forbidden Forest for them to study. Although these birds were the less colorful, distant cousins to the more difficult Fwoopers found in the Southern Hemisphere, without earplugs or a strong silencing charm, the sound of the Swooper would drive the listener just as crazy.

"I don't know how he finds these things. Most people would just cover their ears and run the other way if they saw so many Swoopers in one place, but not Hagrid." She was laughing. 

Glad to be hearing Ginny's voice, Harry listened to the whole story, even though he knew about the birds. When she was finished, he said, "Who do you think helped Hagrid capture those birds? You should have seen Terry Boot and I trying to make the proper arm motions." The boys had to transfigure their robes into Swooper feathers and then wave their arms in a specific pattern to entice the Swoopers to follow them to the reserve' as Hagrid kept calling the small artificial pond he'd set up for them. Of course, they put a Silencing Charm on the Swoopers before they even attempted to get close.

"Maybe you and Terry can demonstrate for me sometime, eh?" Ginny suggested. She closed her eyes and said, "Wait, I think I have a pretty clear mental picture of this anyway." She chuckled softly. 

"Glad I could amuse you, Ginny," Harry answered, smiling at the sound of her soft laugh. 

"Do you think the D.A. meeting went all right, Harry? I didn't have much chance to talk to you there." She didn't want to bring up the fact that Cho had been all over him as the meeting was closing. Maybe they hadn't really broken up? Maybe they were meeting in secret? She definitely wasn't seeing Michael Corner anymore.

"I was hoping that making all the newcomers tickle each other would show them that learning defense can be fun." Harry thought that a little laughter was always a good thing. 

"Some of them were still a bit giggly over their homework in the common room. I think it's safe to say they enjoyed themselves," Ginny said, holding the mirror closer. He could just see her smile and the tip of her nose.

So she'd been down in the common room since the meeting ended, probably with Dean. He certainly hadn't come to bed yet. Harry was still alone in the dormitory and it must be after eleven. If Ginny and Dean weren't dating, why had she spent the whole evening with him?

Suddenly, he didn't feel much like talking any more. Ginny was so sweet. He adored her. But she would never see him as more than a friend. Life just didn't seem fair.

Saying he was especially tired, he said goodnight to Ginny and headed off to the loo. Maybe a nice long shower would help him shake off these depressing thoughts before bed. His anger grew as he felt sorry for himself. His life was never going to be normal. He wished he could smash something.

****

__

Death Eaters surrounded him. They were laughing in cold, cruel voices. Lucius Malfoy's wand was pointing right into his face. He could hear Bellatrix Lestrange taunting him. did you love him, little baby Potter?' The voices seemed to echo and surround him, finally blending into a blinding flash of light, followed by the sound of his own agonized voice saying over and over again, Kill me now, Dumbledore!' 

"Argh..!" His scream pierced the night. Ron was shaking him. His scar was on fire.

"Wake up, Harry. Wake up!" Seeing his friend's eyes open, Ron stopped shouting and handed him his glasses. "Was it another vision? Did you see something?" he asked, remembering when Harry had seen Ron's father attacked in his sleep last year. 

Harry was drenched in sweat and trembling. "Iit was just a nightmare. Ssssorry to wake you," he said. His voice was shaking and his head throbbing, but he knew it was his own fault. He should never have gone to sleep angry and upset, let alone dispensing with his Occlumency exercises. 

"That's okay. Sorry you had a bad dream." Ron was relieved somehow. A nightmare was better than a vision. He thought that Harry's nightmares and visions were a thing of the past.

"Really, Ron. I'm all right. Go back to sleep." His friend's eyes looked heavy lidded and tired, his forehead furrowed with concern. 

"You heard him. Get back to bed everyone." Ron noticed that Seamus, Neville and Dean were standing behind him staring at Harry sleepily. 

Upset that he'd disturbed the whole dormitory, Harry left. Dragging his blanket with him, he went downstairs. Better to spend the rest of the night where he couldn't disturb anyone. Unable to relax enough to go back to sleep, Harry turned his thoughts over and over in his mind until the last embers of the common room fire died and the room filled with the dim grey light of early morning. 

After pushing himself hard in his morning workout, Harry showered and returned to the dormitory to dress. As he walked into the room, he heard Neville talking. "I don't know what happens to me. I could talk to her last year, but now every time she's nearby, I stammer like stupid prat."

Ron grinned and said, "Don't be so hard on yourself, Neville. I'm sure you stammer like a smart prat some of the time." 

Harry shook his head as he searched through his trunk for clean clothes. He thought, Dean's still sleeping soundly or he could give you some advice. He seems to do all right.'

Seamus shot Ron a look of mild disgust and put his arm around Neville. "You came to the right roommate, Neville. Romancing a woman takes delicate handling. Something Weasley knows nothing about."

Neville looked at Harry who was pulling on clean socks. "What do you think Harry? You seem to have a lot of girls around you all the time."

Ignoring the quiet snorts that Ron and Seamus tried to hide. Harry just shrugged and said, "I don't know what you're talking about. You want some advice about what exactly?"

"I can't seem to talk to Luna any more. Every time I get up the nerve to say something, the most embarrassing babble comes out," Neville said. "You have more experience. What's your secret? How do you keep your nerve?"

With a snort and a look of disbelief, Seamus said, "You can't be serious, Neville. Harry has a following because he's the Boy Who Lived. Not because he's a smooth talker." Seamus didn't know how close Neville had been to being the Boy Who Lived. 

Harry finished putting on his shoes and said, "Sorry, Neville. Seamus is right. He knows more about this than I do. Both Seamus and Ron have girlfriends. You should listen to them." He beat a hasty retreat, leaving his dorm mates to sort out their love lives. 

***

After breakfast, when Harry appeared in the Defense classroom with circles under his eyes, Moody said, "Been staying up late chasing the ladies, Potter? You look like you missed your beauty sleep." 

"Very funny, Professor. I just didn't sleep well that's all, Must have eaten something that'd gone off." Thinking that a change of subject would take the Professor's magical eye off of him, he said, "We had the first D.A. meeting last night. Loads more students showed up than we expected. Not too many from Slytherin though." 

"Why do you want the Slytherins?" Moody asked in a growl.

Harry looked thoughtful before answering, "Every year the Sorting Hat tells us that if we don't come together, then we won't survive. I think that's a clear message to make friends among the other houses. Not all evil people come from Slytherin. After all, Peter Pettigrew was in Gryffindor and look how he turned out." Harry despised the little rat. "Slytherin must have many people worth getting to know."

A disdainful voice responded from near the doorway. "You probably mean that you're going after the girls in Slytherin. Good luck, Potter. They aren't interested in half-breeds like you," said Draco who was blocking the door with his two bodyguards.

Harry had no idea how long Draco Malfoy had been standing there. As usual, he had put his own twisted slant on what Harry had to say. 

Moody didn't give Harry a chance to respond. Instead, he ordered Malfoy to his seat, taking five points from Slytherin for blocking the entrance. He began class as soon as possible. Harry was there as an assistant. This was the sixth year Defense class, not N.E.W.T. Defense which was a smaller class made up primarily of former D.A. members. 

Since they were studying how to deal with vampires, the first part of class consisted of looking at wizarding photographs of modern vampires. Most were grotesque creatures, monsters really, not much about them seemed human. Harry hoped he never had to meet one. 

Looking around the class at the Hufflepuffs and Slytherins, Harry noticed the quiet girl he'd met in the D.A. meeting the night before. She smiled in greeting and Harry returned it, a fact that was not lost on Malfoy who immediately intensified the sneer he was sending Harry's way. 

At the end of class, Harry moved toward the door to speak with Sophie, but Goyle was blocking his way. She left before he could make his way around this rather large lumbering obstacle. As Malfoy followed her, he turned and gave Harry a rather self-satisfied look. 

Harry shook his head. Rather than try to interpret the nuances of Malfoy's sneers, Harry thought, Malfoy's just trying to irritate me. Getting angry with him is a waste of time.' Maybe if he could keep reminding himself of that, he could control the anger that was building inside.

Moody and he spent the next hour practicing a series of disabling hexes that would effectively end a fight and bind your opponent. Harry was improving the time it took him to fire off a spell. He was so fast that he seemed able to fire three or four spells at the same time. Dumbledore entered the Defense classroom just before lunch. 

"Ah, Harry. I'm glad I caught you. Professor Moody, might we use your office for a short conference? I need to speak with both of you." Dumbledore had a mild mannered air about him as he indicated that the two of them should precede him into the smaller room. 

Once inside, the Headmaster cast a Locking Charm on the door and a Silencing Charm on the room. He sent a third charm toward the fireplace that Harry didn't recognize, but he suspected that its purpose was to shut down the floo network so they wouldn't be disturbed. 

"What's on your mind, Albus?" barked Moody from behind his desk. "Why all the cloak and dagger?"

Dumbledore answered, "We've captured Peter Pettigrew. Members of the Order will hold him for a short while. Then he'll be handed over to the Ministry. We must keep this quiet for now."

"Who caught him? How? Was he alone?" Harry asked, his face showing the shock that he felt. 

Dumbledore smiled at Harry. "As Kingsley Shacklebolt and Nymphadora Tonks were leaving Grimmauld Place this morning, they noticed a group of men in black robes in the park across the way. I've suspected that Number 12 was under surveillance. Of course, they can't see the actual house because of the Fidelius Charm, but they know where the house used to be and apparently set outposts to watch the area." 

Harry said, "I've always wondered about that. I mean all of the Black family relatives would know where the house is supposed to be even if the Fidelius Charm made it impossible to find." 

With his characteristic twinkle, Dumbledore continued to explain. "Tonks had transformed herself so they had no idea who she was and Kingsley was completely hidden underneath that excellent Invisibility Cloak that you lent us, Alastor. The black wizard robes and Pettigrew's silver hand caught their attention. Tonks pretended to wait for a Muggle bus while Kingsley summoned help from headquarters. When Professor Lupin joined them, he recognized Peter Pettigrew immediately. They were able to stun him before he could transform into a rat. He's being held at headquarters along with two other Death Eaters. I wonder if you would like to speak with him before he's handed over to the Ministry of Magic, Harry?" 

"Me? Whyyou mean I could speak with him alone, Professor?" Harry was amazed that Dumbledore would leave him alone with the man who betrayed his parents, remembering the rage he'd felt toward Sirius when he thought he was the guilty party. Did this mean the Headmaster was beginning to trust Harry to control his temper?

Dumbledore answered softly, "We'll be in the next room, Harry. I thought it might help you come to terms with what this man did to your family. If you have no desire to see him, I understand." He waited calmly for Harry to make a decision.

Harry seemed lost in thought for a few minutes, his calm demeanor masking conflicting emotions. Then he shook his head and said, "I don't have anything to say to him, Professor. I appreciate the offer, but it just doesn't matter now. I've already spoken with him in the Shrieking Shack. He's too far gone to understand what it meant to betray my parents. SiriusWell, he said what needed to be said. Nothing Pettigrew can have to say for himself will bring back my parents or Cedric or change the fact that Sirius spent twelve years in prison." 

Harry remembered Sirius telling Pettigrew that he should have died rather than betray Harry and his parents, As we would have died for you.' This was really Sirius' moment, come too late for it to matter.

A distant look in his eyes, Harry said, "I watched him kill Cedric Diggory. It was Voldemort's wand and he ordered the killing, but Pettigrew uttered the curse. He's nothing more than a murderer."

Moody said, "I'm thrilled they caught the bastard. I want him to swing for betraying James and Lily, not to mention the thirteen people he killed to frame Sirius and young Diggory. HaThis is a great day for justice, Albus. Thanks for coming by with the news." 

Noticing that Harry still seemed a bit grim and tired, Dumbledore said, "Anything you wish to tell me, Harry? I know this is a shock." 

How many times had Hermione told him to tell Dumbledore about his nightmares last year? Would things have been different if Harry had trusted Dumbledore enough to tell him about his scar? He'd found out anyway. Remembering his decision to make this year different, Harry blurted out, "I had a nightmare last night." 

Both men looked surprised. Harry stared at his hands. It sounded so childish when he said it out loud.

The Headmaster tilted his head up and considered Harry through his little glasses. "Was it a vision?" he asked. 

Harry shook his head. "Maybeit was more like a nightmare, a replay of past events. All jumbled together horribly. It could have been Voldemort playing havoc with my mind. I don't know. I was angry when I went to bed. It could have been my fault. OrI wonder if all this time, Voldemort just shut down the connection between us and now he's planning to reopen it. I woke up the whole dorm." 

Slowly, the headmaster asked, "And did your scar bother you at the time?" 

Harry nodded.

"We can work on Occlumency this afternoon, Harry. Anything else on your mind? How did your first D.A. meeting go last night?" Dumbledore asked. 

"We had a pretty good turnout, except for the Slytherins," Harry said. 

Dumbledore looked at Harry with a very serious expression. "You wish more Slytherins were involved in your club? Why, may I ask?" 

"Like the Sorting Hat said, it's time for all of us to come together. It has to start somewhere. I don't know what else I can do to help." Harry shrugged his shoulders. 

Dumbledore said, "You know that a number of the students in Slytherin are the children of known Death Eaters. While I'll keep an open mind about all the students at Hogwarts, you should be careful. I'm not questioning their loyalties at this time. They have yet to choose their path. But, I intend to keep a close watch on their activities." 

Harry didn't speak. He was wondering what his life at Hogwarts would have been like if he'd been sorted into Slytherin. Snape would have been his Head of House. He'd have to sleep in the same room as Malfoy. Thinking aloud he asked, "What about those students who have to live with the children of Death Eaters? What are their lives like?"

Dumbledore gave a small smile, his eyes twinkling again, "You've surprised me once again, Harry. I think you are right to consider finding a way to include the Slytherins in the D.A. We'll all have to think of opportunities for bringing people together from various houses. " 

The dark circles under Harry's eyes looked pronounced. He seemed to have too many burdens on his young shoulders. Dumbledore said, "I suggest that you take the afternoon off from your studies. You look like you could use the rest. I'll inform Professor Flitwick of your absence from Charms. We'll meet for your Tutorial at four." 

Harry found the understanding look in the headmaster's eye calming. Nodding his agreement, he left for lunch. Tears filled his eyes and a lump came to his throat, thinking about how happy Sirius would have been today. Life was so unfair to his godfather. While part of him was thrilled that Pettigrew would now be brought to justice, Sirius' death made the news bittersweet.

The Great Hall was full by the time Harry arrived. Ron had saved him a seat that happily put him across the table from Ginny and Hermione. "Thanks Ron," Harry said, letting out a heavy sigh. 

Hermione said, "What is it, Harry? Rough morning? Let me guess, the Slytherins had Defense class." She looked over at her friend with a self-satisfied look on her face. 

Harry put aside his sad thoughts and answered with a small smile, "You're right, of course, Hermione. They had Defense this morning, but it didn't go particularly badly. I've just had some startling and important news, but I can't tell you here. It's too crowded. Let's go outside."

Ginny said, "I hope you can tell me, too, Harry. I want to know all your secrets." Then she gave a little laugh.

Despite his fatigue, he grinned at her, his eyes sparkling. She smiled back at him, turning his insides to jelly. He was too sleep deprived and emotional to resist. His eyes searched her face as he reached across the table to take her hand. In the process, he knocked over a full pitcher of pumpkin juice. Everyone around them gasped and dabbed at the river of juice with their napkins. Ginny jumped back and away.

Ron laughed heartily and slapped Harry on the back. "Smoothvery smooth." Chuckling and shaking his head, he wondered if he would ever get his friend together with his sister if her mere presence did weird things to his motor control. 

Too busy apologizing to everyone in sight, Harry didn't take offense at his friend's amusement. Hermione uttered a drying spell, then a cleansing spell and order was restored. 

Realizing that he didn't have much time before lunch was over, Harry rose and said, "I've waited long enough. You have to come outside with me." Ron jumped up with him and led the group out of the Great Hall.

As the four of them crossed the entryway to step outside the main entrance to Hogwarts, three figures stepped out of the shadows from the dungeons. "Where are you going, Scarhead? I want a word with you," Malfoy said with his usual sneer and drawl.

"Make an appointment, Malfoy. Office hours are every morning at eleven." Harry thought a small reminder that he was on the staff might help Draco remember his manners. 

"What I have to say won't take long. Stay away from Sophie Moon. She's a pureblood. She doesn't want anything to do with the likes of you." Draco spat the words as though his contempt for Harry was difficult to contain. 

Harry remembered Sophie from the night before at the D.A. meeting, but couldn't imagine why Draco thought he was interested in her. Was he jealous? He answered sincerely, "Malfoy, if she's your girlfriend, you have nothing to worry about from me. We barely spoke." 

This sent Malfoy into sneering overdrive. "My girlfriend! As if I'd have anything to do with her! I'm just telling you to leave the Slytherins alone." 

"Don't the other students in your house have a right to make their own decisions, Malfoy? What right do you have to dictate to them? Or to us? You can't tell other people what to do." Hermione was indignant. 

Crabbe and Goyle were heading back down the stairs to the dungeon after losing their staring match with Ron and Ginny. Ron was much taller and intimidating than they'd ever be. And Ginny, well, they remembered her. Seeing his goons had fled, Malfoy pointed his finger at Harry and said, "This isn't over," before joining them. 

The Gryffindors were relieved to see him go. "I didn't even think about her being from Slytherin. Not that it would have mattered," said Harry.

Hermione added, "She must be the only sixth year Slytherin who came to the D.A. meeting. It was so crowded that I didn't notice her." 

"Now that the dramatics are over, we better get to class. Sorry, Harry, we don't have time to hear your news." Ginny was moving toward the staircase which was crowded with students heading to their afternoon lessons.

Reaching out to clasp her hand, Harry pleaded. "Wait, this is really interesting news. It's worth a few house points. Please, step outside for thirty seconds and listen to this." 

"This better be good, Harry," said Hermione. She earned more house points than anyone else. She didn't like losing them. 

Once they were outside, he pulled everyone close, and said, "We have to keep this quiet right now, but the Order caught Peter Pettigrew!" He grinned as he watched their faces react. They were stunned.

"Harry, you must be so glad!" Ginny cried and pulled him into her arms for a celebratory hug.

"Scabbers!" cried Ron, joining the hug. Hermione grimaced at Ron before making the group hug complete. When they all let go, she linked arms with Harry, and said, "Will he stand trial? Maybe you'll get a chance to confront him." 

Harry's expression changed. "Dumbledore offered. I turned it down. Remember him pleading in the Shrieking Shack? It's useless to talk to him. He's too far gone. Even after we spared his life, he brought Voldemort back and killed Cedric Diggory for him." 

Everyone was silent for a moment. Harry broke the stillness. "But I'm glad he was caught! Maybe this will clear Sirius' name" He left it there, running his hand through his hair. He was suddenly feeling exhausted again, thinking about how it was too late for Sirius to be free, too late to move in together and have a nice life.

His friends all looked concerned as they realized some of what Pettrigrew's capture really meant. Ron spoke for everyone when he said, "We'll have to celebrate in memory of Siriusand Cedric. It's a good day for justice." He clasped his hand onto Harry's shoulder.

Eyes shining with unshed tears; Harry smiled at him and said, "That's what Moody said. I'm going upstairs to rest and contact Remus. Dumbledore told me he'd let Flitwick know. We can talk later." 

But Harry didn't get to rest after all. When they walked back into the entryway, Professor Dumbledore greeted them. The twinkle had disappeared from his eyes. "Harry, you're needed at Grimmauld Place right away. We can floo from my office."

"Can we come, too, Professor?" asked Ginny. She and Harry unconsciously took a step closer to each other.

Dumbledore looked surprised as he looked into her hopeful face. "Your concern is touching, but I don't think that is a good idea. You all have your lessons this afternoon. Harry will return by this evening and I'm sure he'll explain everything in great detail." 

As they watched Harry hurry away with Dumbledore, Ginny sighed and said, "I hate being left out." Ron and Hermione exchanged knowing looks. 

"So, what's the emergency?" Harry asked the Headmaster, wishing that his friends had been able to come with them.

Dumbledore said, "Remus Lupin has decided to barricade himself inside the room with Peter Pettigrew. While we could probably overpower him, we thought it better to attempt to reason with him. We have no time to waste."

A host of feelings swarmed through Harry all at once: remorse, anger, grief and guilt -- ending with worry for his new guardian. He remembered how he felt third year when he first confronted Sirius. He'd found out then that things are seldom how they seem. One thing he was sure about, Pettigrew was pathetic. Whatever the outcome of the afternoon for Pettigrew, he wanted Remus to come away from this situation unhurt. He'd been through enough. If he took his revenge out on Peter, he could spend the rest of his life in Azkaban with no Wolfsbane Potion to lesson his misery. 

Knowing that if he didn't keep his cool, Dumbledore might leave him behind, Harry tried to calm his emotions. Years of practice with the Dursleys served him well. His face became a mask of calm as he spoke deliberately into his two-way mirror. Remus didn't answer. Harry put the mirror away and followed the Headmaster to his office. 

The kitchen at Grimmauld Place was full of Order members. Kingsley Shacklebolt nodded in greeting as Dumbledore and Harry hurried through the room, up the stairs and toward the first floor bedroom where the drama was unfolding. 

A distraught Tonks was at the door trying to speak with Remus. Her cheeks were stained with tears. Harry gave her a small smile. An understanding passed between the two of them. She didn't want Remus hurt any more than Harry did. Silently, she stepped aside so Harry could take a turn at the door. 

"Remus, let me in. I have as much right to talk to Pettigrew as you do," Harry said forcefully, praying that Remus was just talking on the other side of the door. After a moment of silence, the door opened with a quiet click. Harry passed over the threshold.

As Dumbledore and Tonks made to follow Harry through the door, a loud growl startled them. The wild-eyed and angry face of Remus Lupin greeted them with a savage snarl. "Stay out, I'm not finished yet!" he shouted as he pulled Harry the rest of the way into the room and slammed the door, recasting a spell that Harry thought might be an anti-intruder ward.

The room was a wreck. Torn bedding and broken crockery littered the floor. Peter was sitting in a chair in the center of the room bound and gagged. His beady eyes looked frantic. His face and arms were covered with bruises and small abrasions. Wizarding photos lay on the floor around him. 

Remus looked terrible. His hands were bleeding and swollen. His shirtsleeve was torn and his left forearm bore a large, blistering burn from contact with Pettigrew's silver hand. It had only been a few days since the full moon. That always made the old werewolf tired, but he looked beyond exhaustion. 

He paced menacingly behind Peter, staring at the back of his prisoner's head in a dark and desperate way. Wand in hand, he asked, "What shall we do to him, Harry? Death is too good for him." 

To be continued

Notes to reviewers: 

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Lourdes: Harry is too noble sometimes, but I promise he won't end up alone. Thanks for your review!

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athenakitty: Yes, there will definitely be more pranking. I think it's pretty obvious who the prankster is, too. The sword will be an integral part of the action later. Thanks for your note!

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aschowin: I'm glad you're enjoying the story. I'll try to keep going. Thanks for your review!

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Potter Reader: Thanks for reviewing! I think Hermione always knew Ron had it in him. She's always thought there was more to him than the "Quidditch is Life" façade. The Harry/ Ginny confusion won't last much longerRon can't take it. 

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Nightwing509: Harry and Ginny will reach a mutual understanding soon. One of them has to crack, even if they embarrass themselves. Thanks for your review!

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Jaquelyne: Hello! The late night mirror conversations are supposed to be the teenage wizarding equivalent of the nightly phone call or IM that Muggle teenagers rely on to communicate. When I was that age, I remember speaking on the phone for hours about absolutely nothing. At least Ginny and Harry have a private line. If only they could read each other's minds. It would make for better fluff! Glad you liked the fencing lessons. Thanks for writing!

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Gryphonmistress: Thanks for your wish of "good luck and a ward against writer blocks!" You're so clever. And I need all the help I can get. I hope you like the irony of their parallel dilemma. It won't last forever.

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PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: Good to hear from you again. I love Ron for many reasons. I'm glad you don't mind that I made him more mature. Thanks for writing!

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HappySnakesRule: Thanks for your nice comments! I'm glad you like the story so far. The relationship confusion won't be cleared up without some help from Harry's friends. But something has to changethere are adventures ahead and Harry can't go alone. 

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KandiG85/86: Thanks for your review! I'm glad you like the story so far. I'm trying to update frequently to keep the plot twists fresh in people's mind.

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	14. The Best Revenge

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter. I'm really interested in what people have to say. Thanks for writing reviews! 

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Chapter Fourteen

The Best Revenge

"What shall we do to him, Harry? Death is too good for him." The question hung in the air between the angry werewolf and the young wizard. 

Harry wasn't frightened by this outburst. Remus would never hurt him. Harry also knew the Headmaster could get in any time he wanted. Now he would find out if Dumbledore really did trust him to handle things. 

The two remained motionless for a moment while Harry took in the ragged, wretched appearance of his new guardian. Pain and grief showed in his eyes. His face seemed alive with anger. His jaw was set and his nostrils flared. In a low-pitched, deadly calm voice, Harry asked, "Do you really think he's worth it, Remus?"

Before he could answer, Peter Pettigrew distracted them by making a muffled sound. It might have been a scream without the gag that tightly bound his mouth. With an open hand, Lupin smacked him across his head and yelled, "Shut up!" The muffled noises didn't stop as the strength of Lupin's blow rocked the chair holding Pettigrew. 

As the chair lost its balance, Harry made Lupin's wand fly to him and stepped between him and the quivering mass bound to the chair. Unable to check the force of his next blow, which he was already swinging toward Peter before he fell, Remus struck Harry's face instead.

"Gah! Ohbloody hell" said Harry as the sting of the blow coursed through him. 

"Harryoh, nowhat've I done? II was aiming for Peter. Let me see," said Remus, his expression shifting from vengeful rage to remorse. The overturned prisoner lay unheeded on the floor.

Harry shut his eyes tight to stop tears from falling and covered his face with his hand. Recovering slightly, he said, "Oh, wellIt'll be all right." It hurt like hell, but he wanted to calm the situation. 

Their brief scuffle excited the interest of the people waiting in the hall. "Harry? Remus? Let me inI have to come in there," Tonks shouted through the door while rattling the handle. Several other excited garbled voices could be heard talking outside.

Raising his eyebrows in question, Harry looked at Remus who was still visibly distraught. Remus shook his head. 

Harry shouted, "We're all right, Tonks. It's fine. We just need a little more time alone."

Still ignoring Pettigrew who was bound to the chair on the floor, Harry sat down on the bed. Distressed, but quieter, Remus joined him and said, "Let me take a look at that." 

He lifted Harry's hand off his cheek so he could take a look. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to." His earlier wild-eyed expression was replaced by concern for his godson as his focus shifted from Pettigrew to Harry.

"Uhshould hope not." Harry held his hand toward Pettigrew and set him upright without comment. With another hand motion and a whispered spell, he silenced the prisoner. He still held Remus' wand in his other hand. 

"Stop that, Harry!" Remus scolded. "Give me back my wand. I won't have you getting into trouble over him. You shouldn't be doing magic away from school anyway. You have to be more careful!" While he sounded agitated again, his face only showed anxiety.

Harry gave him a small smile. Grinning made his cheek hurt, but he didn't mind. He was too relieved to see Remus' anger replaced with worry. Pointing his hand palm up toward the back of Pettigrew, Harry said, "You're lecturing me about being careful? That's what I was going to say to you. I don't want you to get into trouble because of him. Who cares about him? I came here because of youyou don't seem quite yourself, Remus." 

Dropping his head to his chest, Remus didn't answer. They'd been through a similar scene two years before in the Shrieking Shack. Sirius had been the crazed one then. 

Searching for the right words, Harry said in a quiet voice, "II came here today because I don't want to lose you. Pettigrew's a waste of time."

Lifting his face to Harry's, Remus growled, "He's a murderer, Harry." 

Caught by the pain in the older man's eyes, Harry didn't look away. "I know what he is," he answered darkly. As the two men continued to stare at each other, Harry added in a hollow voice, "I watched him kill Cedric Diggory."

Remus' anger reignited. "That's right. If you'd let Sirius and I kill him the first time, he never would've had the chance. Don't stop me now! He doesn't deserve any mercy."

Harry shouted back. "Don't you think I know that! I know it's my fault he escaped last timethat Cedric would be alive if I hadn't, but that still doesn't make it rightYou don't have to become like him." Anger and guilt bolted through Harry at the thought of all the crimes that could be lain at Pettigrew's feet. Fueled by the very real fear of losing Remus over this, anger swelled within Harry until the air in the room began to crackle.

Both of them were on their feet again. A feral look on his face, the werewolf within him close to the surface, Lupin said, "It doesn't matter anymore, Harry. Let me do this Every full moonall of this time. I've have fought the temptation to tear someone apart. Now I can put it good use." 

Harry stood in front of him. "You're not a murderer! He is!" he shouted. It did the trick, shocking Remus out of his rage. Seeing him relax slightly, Harry moved away. He began to pick up the photographs scattered around the room. Most showed the school age Marauders smiling happily. Obviously, Remus had been trying to make a point by showing them to Peter before Harry arrived. 

Relieved that Remus was looking more like the mild mannered Professor Lupin, Harry said, "Pettigrew already knows that he missed out on living a nice life. Perhaps that's punishment enough. He knows he had it great for a while, friends who would do anything for himgood times." 

Remus stood staring at the back of his former friend's head again, all traces of anger had been replaced by sadness. Handing him the stack of photos, Harry continued, "He knows he threw it all away for nothing, for a life that's worse than death. Serving Voldemort is a horrible way to live. If he's still capable of feeling anything, he's probably glad he's been caught."

The photo on the top of the stack showed the Marauders in happier times. They looked about the same age as Harry. James and Sirius both wore cocky grins. Remus was trying to suppress his laughter, and Peter wore a shy, happy smile. 

Remus fingered the edge of the photo for a moment, then said quietly, "I can't forgive him."

"He wouldn't understand it if you did." Harry waved his hand dismissively at Pettigrew as he spoke.

Looking mournfully at Harry, Remus said, "He took it all away from me, Harry -- Sirius, James, Lily, even you. You had to live with those Muggles. You missed out on so much...all because of this little rat." He pointed his wand at Pettigrew again. Tears began to fall unchecked down Remus' face. 

Putting his hand over Remus' wand hand, Harry gently lowered it so the wand was pointed at the floor. "Yes and no. Yes, he did all of those things and he should be punished for it and no, you and I still have a nice life. People care about both of us. We have each other and we have loads of friends andand, like I said, people who matter." He paused for a moment. Speaking quietly and clearly, he said, "You matter to me, Remus." 

At this, Remus broke out of his melancholy. Tears still shining in his eyes, he stared into Harry's determined face and simply nodded. 

Seeing his guardian relax, Harry added with a small smile. "There's a nice looking Auror on the other side of that door who obviously doesn't want anything bad to happen in here today. I'd say you matter to her, too."

Remus smirked and said, "Hmmare you saying that the best revenge is to have a nice life?" 

Harry nodded, "Well, all rightsomething like that. I'm saying that we both have a lot of good things to spend our time doing. Pettigrew's life is over. It's his turn to go to Azkaban, not yours." 

Remus punched Harry's shoulder. "You're so grown up sometimes, Harry." 

"I'm not sure that's a compliment." Harry smiled. "And -- and you really have to quit punching me."

Remus laughed softly and nodded.

"Can we let the others in now?" Harry asked as he moved toward the door.

"Wait. Isn't there anything you'd like to say to him, Harry? I've been in here for a quite a while telling him how much he hurt everyone with his betrayal. He hurt you the worst. Don't you want to punch himjust once?"

"A punch won't bring back Sirius or Cedric. It won't give me a childhood spent with loving parents. Sirius said the right thing to him back in the Shrieking Shack; he should have died all those years ago. Even after that, he went and resurrected Voldemort. Can't you see what a lost cause he is? A punch would only hurt my hand." Harry opened the door to let in the others. 

Tonks ran straight to Remus' and threw her arms around him. Harry smirked at his friend's surprised look.

The twinkle was back in the Headmaster's eyes, as he looked at Harry with pride. Harry had the feeling that he knew everything that had just happened, even though he hadn't been in the room. 

Dumbledore asked, "Shall we ask the prisoner a few questions before we turn him over to the Ministry, Harry? This can take the place of your afternoon lesson."

Harry was confused. Despite the emotionally draining scene with Remus and Peter, his interest was roused. Did Dumbledore mean that he should try to use Legilimency on him? He was hardly proficient at it. Harry nodded in agreement. "What shall we ask, Professor?"

Dumbledore ran a healing charm over Harry's bruised cheek as Kingsley Shacklebolt removed Pettigrew's gag with a wave of his wand. Three Aurors that Harry didn't recognize surrounded the prisoner, their wands pointed at his heart.

Obviously in charge of the interrogation, Shacklebolt said, "Why don't you begin, Harry? Anything you'd like to know?"

Harry moved to sit in front of Pettigrew so he could maintain eye contact. So quietly that no one could hear him, Harry removed the silencing spell and said, "_Legilimens!_" Then he asked, "Where is Voldemort?" Pettigrew gasped and tried to look away, but Harry persisted. "Look at me, Peter. Where is Voldemort?" 

"He's in a castle in Spain." Wormtail said, looking oddly relieved. "I'll tell you anything you want to know, Harry. I haven't forgotten that you saved me before. That's twice I owe you. Could you wipe my forehead for me?" His brow was glistening with sweat. The few hairs he stretched over his bald spot were plastered to his head. His beady eyes looked at Harry eagerly, as though he expected something from him.

That eager look made Harry's stomach lurch. Ignoring Peter's request, he turned to Dumbledore and said quietly, "He's lying. The castle where Voldemort is living seems more like it's somewhere rainylike England... I can't be sure." 

"Whano it isn't. I wouldn't make things uup." Pettigrew sputtered. 

Dumbledore gave Harry an appraising look. "Impressive, Harry. Please continue. Do you think you could stand to stay and verify his statements while Kingsley and the others interrogate him?" 

Harry looked over at Remus who still had his arm around Tonks. "Maybebut I think I should take Remus away from here, Professor. He's had enough." 

"Who's the guardian here, Harry?" Remus asked lightly; but he wasn't opposed to leaving.

Dumbledore turned to Tonks and said, "Nymphadora, would you mind taking Remus to the drawing room? Harry will join you shortly." 

As they left, Alastor Moody entered the room. Harry spent the next half hour staring into the soulless, beady eyes of the man who betrayed his parents to Voldemort, who killed Cedric Diggory in cold blood and who cut off his own hand to bring back the most evil Dark Wizard of their time. He had to put thoughts of those crimes out of his mind in order to concentrate. 

Almost motionless, Harry sat a few feet away from the prisoner, maintaining eye contact during the questioning. The _Legilimens _spell worked easily on Wormtail's weak mind. Not only was Harry able to tell when he was lying, but he could sometimes sense the truth as well. 

Pettigrew interrupted the questioning frequently with requests and questions of his own. "Just untie my hands for me, Harry. My nose itchesmaybe you could just scratch it a little for me?" Only the intimidating presence of the Aurors kept Pettigrew from whining nonstop.

His pleas fell on deaf ears. Harry stayed completely focused on the _Legilimens_ spell. It was when Shacklebolt asked, "Who works for Voldemort at the Ministry of Magic?" that Harry's intrusion into Pettigrew's mind yielded a stronger image. This wasn't a feeling or a reaction to the question. This was a memory. 

Without warning, Harry sprang from his seat and severed Pettigrew's artificial hand with a shouted spell and a swift hand motion. The silver prosthesis fell to the floor with a loud thud. Before anyone else had a chance to react, a high cold laugh echoed through Harry's mind. 

"Don't touch it!" yelled Harry, grabbing his scar. "There's a spell on it." He threw up an invisible shield and moved away, not taking his eyes off the hand. Dumbledore, Moody, Shacklebolt and the other Aurors cast their own shield charms, leaving Pettigrew the only one who was unprotected.

The eerie laugh became the cold voice of Voldemort in Harry's mind. "I know where you are, Potter. You won't escape me so easily this time." 

Harry closed his eyes and focused, trying to clear his mind and block Voldemort while still maintaining his shield. The pain in his scar was blinding him. He felt the mind block go up and the pain in his forehead eased. He reopened his eyes.

While Harry had been forcing Voldemort out of his mind, the silver hand had dissolved into a gray mist that clouded around him, obscuring him from view. So far, it hadn't penetrated the barrier of Harry's shield. Moody shouted, "_Evanesco! _" and "_Finite Incantatem!_ " Neither spell worked. Instead of disappearing, the gray mist began to glow until red and orange flames flared. 

Harry found himself surrounded by flames. His shield held, but the heat was uncomfortable. Concentrating all his energy on maintaining the invisible barrier that was keeping the flames away, Harry heard an echo of that eerie laugh return. 

Everyone except Harry and Wormtail shouted a spell to douse the fire. Like water poured on a grease fire, the flames scattered and became more intense. Dumbledore stepped forward and shouted, "_Contenere!_" A dark, clear globe appeared in his hand. The flames were pulled into the sphere as if absorbed by an invisible force. The globe shone brightly for a moment before Dumbledore uttered a banishing spell that Harry didn't recognize.

Looking relieved as he came back into view, Harry quietly muttered, "Thanks." But he didn't lower either the shield in his mind or the invisible one protecting him from any magic in the room. Dumbledore was considering him carefully.

Shacklebolt came out from behind an armoire and asked, "What was that about?" 

Harry answered, "In a flash I saw it in his mind. Voldemort charmed his hand to trap me. If I'd touched Pettigrew, or moved close enough for him to touch me, it would have become a Portkey transporting both of us to Voldemort." Harry's words were strong, but his smile was shaky and his face was pale. In a light tone, he said, "It's just as well that I didn't punch him." 

Not commenting on Harry's use of Wandless Magic to remove Pettigrew's hand and throw up his shield. Professor Moody growled, "Time for you to get out of here, Potter. We'll handle things now. Just go." 

Harry walked out the door without a backward glance. 

Pettigrew was crying now. The stump of his hand had long since healed. Losing the prosthetic silver hand had not caused him any physical pain. But he'd known his purpose was to capture Harry. He'd failed. If he ever escaped Azkaban, there would be no return to his master. His life was over. It really had all been for nothing.

***

Remus stopped pacing when Harry entered the drawing room. Tonks sat up on the couch. Remus said, "Finally. What took so long? I thought I heard shouting."   


At the reassuring sight of his guardian, Harry smiled and said, "They had loads to ask him. I guess they think the Ministry won't try to uncover the truth Anywayit was all a trap. Pettigrew was sent to kidnap me." He sank into a chair near Tonks and put his head in his hands. 

At first Tonks was excited by the drama of it all. She jumped up and exclaimed excitedly, "What? I wondered why Pettigrew was so easy to catch. I just thought the Death Eaters were slipping or short handed or something. After all, we captured so many of them at the Ministry last June. Of course it was a trap! They were practically waiting for us outside!" She seemed almost happy at the revelation. 

The other two remained quiet. From the exhausted expressions on Remus and Harry's faces, she realized they'd had a different reaction to the afternoon's activities. 

Remus took the place on the couch that Tonks had vacated. He looked at Harry's bowed head and prompted, "What do you mean? How was it a trap?"

Harry let his head fall back against the high-backed chair and took a deep breath. His eyes were focused on the ceiling. Letting out a long slow breath, he said, "I could see it in his mind. Voldemort sent Pettigrew to collect me." Harry explained what happened in the room after he severed Peter's fake hand. 

"Dumbledore's an amazing wizard. It's lucky he stayed in the room with you," Remus said. Then he gasped softly as he realized how he had encouraged Harry to punch Peter just once. 

Seeing him pale, Harry said, "I know. It's a good thing that I didn't want to touch him. I'd probably be dead by now." He didn't want to think about it.

"Don't say things like that Harry. There's always more than one way to work things out." Remus tried to reassure Harry.

Not wanting to think about Voldemort anymore, Harry looked at Remus. His cuts had been healed and a soft white cloth with some sort of purple goo had been applied to the burn on his forearm. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Leaning toward Harry and putting his hand on his shoulder, Remus said, "I think we're both more than all right. Thanksfor everything you said up there." Harry shrugged as Remus let go of his shoulder, rumpled his messy black hair and asked, "When did you learn Legilimency, Harry?" 

Harry thought for a moment before answering. "I don't know how to do true Legilimency — not like Snape. I can't actually read anyone's thoughts, but I don't really think it's much different than Occlumency. It's the same skills. You can't learn one without developing the ability to do the other. I've only sensed emotions and ideas that are on the surface beforeand I think I can tell when someone's lying to me. Anyway, Professor Dumbledore is a much better teacher than Snape." 

Tonks snorted and said, "Well, there's a shocker." She noticed that Harry at least gave her a small smile in response. Both Remus and Harry looked exhausted. "Who's hungry?" she asked with enthusiasm. 

Before either of them could answer, Professor Dumbledore entered the room. Despite his age, he exuded strength and power. He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Peter Pettigrew is gone as are the other two Death Eaters we captured. The Aurors have taken them to the Ministry."

"Will he stand trial, Professor?" Harry asked.

"That is our hope. We shall have to wait and see how the Ministry responds. At least we were able to question all three men first," Dumbledore answered. His eyes were full of kindness as he spoke. 

"For a kidnapping plot, this one seems poorly planned. How did Voldemort even know that I would be near enough to Pettigrew to touch him?" Harry asked. 

Tilting his head back, Dumbledore studied his pupil. Harry looked tired, but determined, as if he wasn't going to stop asking questions until he heard an answer that made sense to him. 

Dumbledore said, "I believe that their plan took some calculated risks. From what we know of him, we might assume that Mr. Pettigrew was a loyal Death Eater with limited magical talent. His usefulness to Voldemort would be his knowledge of you and your friends gained from his years spent as your friend Ron's household pet. Once he'd told all he knew of those years, what else did he have to offer? The two Death Eaters captured with Mr. Pettigrew were new recruits."

Remus looked thoughtful, "So you're saying all three men were expendable." That made sense.

"But why did they think I would be involved?" Harry persisted. 

Remus answered for him. "It's a long standing tradition in wizard courts to allow the victims of a crime to confront the perpetrator. Of course, it's usually after a trial and conviction." He looked guiltily at Harry. 

Smiling at the look, Harry said, "I think you've already had your turn to confront him, Remus Don't feel bad. I seem to remember Sirius trying to strangle me in order to go after Pettigrew in the Shrieking Shack. Today was just..." Harry's voice trailed off. He looked thoughtful for a moment, then said, "So the real plan was for Peter to capture me in open court, during a trial with all the higher ups in the wizarding world watching helplessly as Voldemort struck me down right under their noses"

Dumbledore nodded. "That appears to be the case."

"The Ministry would think they were doing the right thing, bringing Pettigrew to justice and Voldemort would use that against them." Harry looked grim, his lips drawn in a thin line. 

Dumbledore answered, "It seems very likely. Tom Riddle always did have a flair for dramatics." Looking carefully at Harry, he continued, "We'll have to wait to see if this really is a good day for justice. I need to speak with some people at the Ministry -- make sure that some things are attended to. Will you be all right here until I return, Harry?" 

Harry was confused. Was the Headmaster just concerned for him or was he suggesting that he go to the Ministry with him? His forehead furrowed, he answered, "I'm fineI'd like to stay here. If it's all right."

"Are you worried that there will be another attempt to kidnap, Harry? Should he go straight back to Hogwarts?" Remus asked bluntly. 

With a twinkle in his eye, Dumbledore said, "I do not think we have to worry about another attempt tonight. In any case, they will not be able to get into Grimmauld Place. All the same protections are still in place. Today's events are an indication that Voldemort is actively working on plans to capture Harry, we do not know any more details. We may need to consider other safety measures." 

Turning to Harry, he said, "Your Occlumency skills seemed to be equal to today's test. Is there anything you wish to tell me?" 

Harry smiled at the familiar question and said, "Yes, there is something you should know. I had to force Voldemort out of my mind twice after severing Pettigrew's hand. But, as you say, I was equal to the test. I was able to close off my mind, even while trying to hold the Shield Charm. Thanks for the rescue, Professor." 

***

After Dumbledore left for the Ministry, Harry ate dinner at Grimmauld Place with Tonks and Remus. Returning to the house wasn't as grim as Harry had thought it would be. He could still envision Sirius everywhere he looked, but he wasn't as sad as he'd thought he'd be. Perhaps because the day was so full of purpose.

Seeing Harry lost in thought, Remus asked, "Is something bothering you?"

Shaking his head, Harry answered, "Not reallyjust thinking about what this day would have meant to Sirius. If Pettigrew is brought to justice, then Sirius had something to do with it. He never gave up, even in Azkaban."

Remus agreed, "He came after Peter at Hogwarts when the odds of catching him were next to none." 

With a sigh and a small smile, Harry continued, "Sirius always held on to whatever hope the future offered, even when there wasn't much to go on. There's a lesson to be learned from the way Sirius lived. He never stopped trying and he never let people down if he could help it."

"And he had as much fun as he could," Remus said with an affectionate smile. 

Harry's smile reached his eyes this time. "I heard that Kreacher's gone, but what happened to the portrait?" They all knew which portrait he meant. The silence in the entryway was a vast improvement. 

Tonks looked a little guilty. Harry asked, "What did you do, Tonks? Get mad and blast it to pieces?"

She gave Harry a saucy grin. "No, I convinced Mrs. Black's painting that she'd been invited to live elsewhere, among her own kind, since this house no longer belongs to the Black Family." 

Remus interrupted, "We had to remove part of the wall with it." 

Tonks chuckled softly at the memory, "So what if it got a little messy? Anyway, I wrapped her up and sent her to Narcissa Malfoy. Hope she liked her present." Remus looked at her appreciatively. "Anyway, now I can trip in the hall all I want without waking up that old hag."

"Sirius would approve, Tonks," Harry said. 

They moved back to the drawing room after dinner and had a nice long visit, catching up on all the things they'd been doing. Harry enjoyed the evening. By the time Professor Dumbledore returned it was really late. They said goodnight and Dumbledore and Harry flooed back to Hogwarts.

As he moved away from the Gargoyle that guarded the Headmaster's office, Harry hurried toward Gryffindor tower. He'd realized something as he talked to Remus earlier — people were the most important part of his life. He knew that there was one person who mattered more to him than all the rest. It was probably too late to talk to her tonight, but he wanted to retrieve his mirror and check. She might still be awake.

When he entered the tower, it was just after midnight. The common room was dark except for the light from the hearth. Harry started up the stairs to the boys' dormitory before he noticed that someone was curled up like a cat on the couch in front of the fire — someone with long red hair. Parchment and books were spread around her as though she'd fallen asleep while studying. Changing his mind about going to bed, Harry made himself comfortable in the chair by the fire.

Wishing that Ginny would wake up so they could talk, Harry decided to settle for watching her sleep. It seemed selfish to wake her. Besides, he didn't think she'd ever looked more beautiful. She seemed so peaceful and innocent. The only hint of her lively personality was the firelight kindling her disorderly red and gold hair. 

Harry's thoughts were just as disordered. He'd kept a lid on his emotions throughout today's ordeal because he didn't want Dumbledore or one of the other Order members to exclude him. He knew his relationship with Remus was stronger than ever. And Dumbledore seemed pleasedmaybe now he would have more faith in him. Those were all good things; but his life was still out of control and unfair. 

It seemed to Harry that his friends led such normal lives. They were all wonderful in their way. He admired and envied them. No one expected them to rid the world of an evil wizard. Harry cursed his fate. Ron always had a hopeful, cheerful outlook. Hermione was brilliant and loyal. Luna had such a unique point of view. Seamus was in love with Lavender. Neville knew everything about Herbology and worked so hard all the time. And Deanwell, he was a really good artist and all the girls thought he was handsome. What would he give to be more like them? 

Ginny stirred in her sleep, bringing his thoughts back to her. One thing about his life that he wouldn't trade for anything was his friendship with her. She was the most wonderful friend of all. He stared at her face, memorizing, trying to burn the image of her into his brain so that he would always be able to see her in his mind. 

It occurred to Harry that maybe she was curled up in a tight ball because she was cold. She had on the thin knit Muggle exercise clothes that she often wore when she lounged around doing homework. The couch wasn't all that near the fire. Moving carefully so he wouldn't disturb her, he put a warming charm on his school robe and spread it over her sleeping form. 

Harry watched her pull the robe close and stretch out more comfortably. As she turned in her sleep, her hair fell back off her face and neck. Her skin was creamy white with a delicate dusting of freckles. Harry decided he better go to his own bed. Before leaving, he conjured a small white lily, just as he'd so often done last summer. Leaning over Ginny, he traced her cheek with the flower and left it on her pillow.

To be continued

Notes to Reviewers: 

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Lourdes1: Hello again. Thanks for reviewing!

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sambow24: Thanks! I'll keep trying. 

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Nightwing509: You'll find the answer to one OF YOUR questions in this chapter. Lupin does recover himself. Plotwise, Malfoy has loads more to dobut that's for later. Thanks for reviewing!

Kirstie232: Thanks! I hope you continue to enjoy it.

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athenakitty: You're really good at figuring things out. Harry doesn't just suggest ithe took it off! I like your idea of an infertility spell. Thanks for your review!

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Anne: Good suggestion! Later in the story is a chapter all about the prophecy. Thanks for your review.

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Black Vengeance: Thanks for your suggestion, and thanks for reading and reviewing my story. 

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PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: Thanks for writing! Sorry about the cliffie. You're right, I don't like them either so why did I do it? Oh well, the rest of that scene wasn't ready to post yet. Here it is nowforgive me? 

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SCALES-TALON: Thanks for reviewing!

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Jaqueline: I enjoyed making Remus' control crack for a bit. I'm hoping to explore the relationship between Remus and Harry more, if the plot allows. I think he and Harry have much in common. The next few chapters have more about Harry and Ginny including Ron stepping up his matchmaking. As always, thanks for your comments!

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HappySnakesRule: I agree with you, Peter must have had some good traits or they would never have been friends. And look how he repaid them for their trust Thanks for reviewing!

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Lily and James Potter: Thanks for writing! I will try to update frequently. I have to ask — are there two of you?

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dragonclawz54: Interesting ideas. Using Peter for a punching bag was a way to reduce some stress. Since the Cruciatus curse is illegal, Remus had to settle for some old fashioned Muggle torture. Easily covered up and forgiven by wizards. Thanks for your review!

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Areianna: Thanks for all of your nice comments. I'm glad you like the story so far. Your analysis of the friends dilemma is really true. People can miss out on something great by not admitting their feelings. Harry and Ginny seem so well suited, it would be heartbreaking if they never figured it out... Thanks for saying that about frequent updates. I really am trying to be quick in order to make the story easier to follow. I don't have any secrets. I'm new at this. Maybe we could get our hands on a magic wand somewhere Thanks for reviewing!

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kmargarden: Good to hear from you again. I'm sorry about crazy Remus. I see it as the werewolf finally cracking through his control. While he was calm in the Shrieking Shack scene, he did try to kill Pettigrew. I figured if he was mad enough to kill him then, how much angrier might he be after losing Sirius, too. Forgive me? Anyway, you and I totally agree about Harry and Ginny. Thanks for writing!

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hart-break: I had to laugh when I read your review. You paraphrased a line I wrote for Ron in an upcoming chapter. You'll know it when you read it. Soare you psychic? Thanks for your review!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	15. The Best Laid Plans

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Notes to reviewers are at the end of the story. I am interested in what people have to say. Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read and review! 

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Chapter Fifteen 

The Best Laid Plans

In the cold gray light of morning, Ginny stretched her legs as she woke up wondering where she was. She'd been having a great dream about Harry. Closing her eyes, she tried to recapture that feeling of being all wrapped up safe and warm. 

Opening her eyes, she realized she was in the common room. The hearth was cold. She was only warm because someone had wrapped a Hogwarts robe around her. She breathed in a familiar scent. It had to be Harry's. She gave a little gasp as she noticed the small white lily on her pillow. "Hello, Harry," she said aloud as she picked up the flower and brushed it along her cheek. She hurried upstairs to get ready for the day. 

Arriving at breakfast late after his morning run, Harry slipped quietly into the seat next to Ron and began filling his plate with eggs and bacon. 

Hermione had the Daily Prophet propped in front of her. Harry wondered if there was any news about Pettigrew, but he wasn't sure he wanted to begin the day with loads of questions, even from his friends. At least the Prophet hadn't spread the news of Pettigrew's kidnapping attempt. Perhaps the day would go smoothly after all.

Breakfast was fairly quiet. Ron was busy eating. Hermione was busy reading. Harry had let Ron know what happened the night before back in the dormitory and Ron had filled Hermione in before they came down to breakfast. They'd already agreed to find Ginny at lunchtime and go somewhere they could discuss the details. So far, she hadn't made an appearance at breakfast.

From the head table, Dumbledore was motioning to Harry. 

As he approached the Headmaster, Professor Snape stopped him. "Missed you in detention last night, Potter. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Before Harry could answer, Snape continued, "What can possibly excuse you for blatantly ignoring a detention? That will be another fifty points from Gryffindor and detention every eve" 

Dumbledore interrupted. "I am so sorry, Severus. This was my fault really. Harry was unavoidably detained last night. I would have informed you, if I'd known you were expecting him. Please accept my apology and excuse his absence." He smiled at the Potions Master and turned to Harry. 

"Ah, Harry. Good morning." Dumbledore looked Harry over from head to toe, not liking what he saw. The boy looked tired and tense. 

Deciding the less said to Snape, the better, Harry nodded his response and mumbled, "Good morning, Professor." He was more than a little uncomfortable at being summoned to the Headmaster's table. He felt like everyone was watching him. After yesterday's roller coaster of emotions, he was hoping today would be quieter. Seeing Dumbledore hesitate, Harry asked, "What's the problem?" 

Snape rolled his eyes at the boy's impertinence.

"Professor Moody has been called away on business. Could you cover the Defense classes today, perhaps spend the day reviewing?" When Harry just looked puzzled, he continued, "You'll be excused from your afternoon class with Professor Hagrid, but you should be finished in time for your fencing lesson." 

It seemed to Harry that Dumbledore was dismissing him. He wondered if he was back to square one with the Headmaster keeping him in the dark about what was really happening — even after all that had happened last night. Speaking very deliberately, he asked, "What happened to Professor Moody?Or can't you saySir." Harry added the sir' in an effort to cover his annoyance. 

Professor Snape stared at him with thinly veiled contempt, but Harry persisted, keeping his voice quiet. "What about the Ministry? Did you find out whether or not Pettigrew will stand trial?" 

Dumbledore's expression relaxed. He said, "AhI see. You want a full explanation of last night's activities." It was more a statement than a question. 

Sighing, he continued, "Alas, part of me still hopes to shield you from the problems facing us all — to keep you safe."

Although softened by this admission, Harry still looked straight into Dumbledore's eyes and said, "This affects my life. I can't take care of myself if I don't know what's going onWhat happened at the Ministry?"

Sighing, the Headmaster said, "This isn't a subject to discuss openly in front of students and faculty. You could perhaps defer your questions until a more suitable time and place." His tone held an air of finality.

Harry looked around at the Great Hall. There were probably two hundred students clustered around the various tables. Maybe Dumbledore had a point. Ignoring Snape's contemptuous stare, Harry said, "Of course, no problem. And don't worry about the Defense classes." 

Dumbledore nodded his approval and went back to his seat.

Harry turned to leave. As he passed Snape, the Potions Professor said, "Not so fast, Potter. The Headmaster may have excused you from further punishment, but I believe you still have last night's detention to make up. I'll expect you at eight this evening."

Harry knew protesting was futile. In as even a tone as he could manage, he said, "I'll be there, Professor."

The rest of the day went smoothly. He met Ginny, Ron and Hermione at lunch to fill them in on what had happened the night before. Teaching kept Harry too busy to worry about what might be happening at the Ministry. He arrived at his fencing lesson feeling relaxed and eager for the exercise. 

Finding the practice room empty, Harry reached inside his fencing bag for the broadsword he'd been using during his lessons. Next to it lay the sword he'd recovered from the cave. Dumbledore hadn't mentioned it in ages. Maybe it would be all right just to go through some of the motion drills using the real sword. 

He pulled the sword out of its scabbard and stood in the center of the room. The salon was empty except for a few chairs pushed against the stone walls. The room had a high ceiling and arched windows along one side. Other than a few portraits near the entry, the walls were bare. On the far side of the room, double doors led out onto the Hogwarts grounds near the greenhouses, but these were always kept locked. 

As Harry examined the designs on his sword, he thought over what McGonagall had said. On one side, the symbols stood for strength. A Dragon and a Griffin, together they would be a powerful force. On the other side were symbols of a phoenix and a serpent. She'd said serpents weren't always thought of as dark creatures. Since a phoenix represented rebirth, perhaps in this case, so did the serpent. 

There was still no sign of his instructor so Harry started to go through the sword drills that he'd learned. What harm could it do?' he thought. As he sliced through the air with his sword, he began to hear a low hum.

As he went through his paces in the fencing room, he began to think about facing Voldemort. He focused on the image of that evil, snakelike face. It became the only thing on Harry's mind as he swung the heavy sword. He imagined what it would be like to battle face to face, although a real battle with Voldemort wasn't likely to be a sword fight. Harry would have to think of a workable approach. Maybe Ron could think of something. 

He remembered what Ginny had told him about Merlin. Why not try to trap Voldemort within a cave just as Ninianne had done all those years ago to Merlin? Trap him, render his magic useless, contain him within the walls of a mountain where he could no longer spread his evil throughout the wizarding world. If only he knew how.

Moving swiftly with the blade while adding the foot movements, Harry was so focused on what he was doing that he didn't hear anyone come in. As he spun around and made a down stroke motion with his sword, a lightening bolt of power came out the end of it. The streak of white light shot across the length of the room and struck the wooden doors that led to the greenhouses. 

"Bollocks," he said to himself as he ran across to inspect the damage. Harry laid his sword across a chair. Then he bent down next to the doors for a closer look. The two large, heavy wooden doors were cut in two. The cuts were smooth, as if the doors had been severed by a laser instead of a blade.

"All you can say is 'Bollocks?' What happened? Where did you get that sword?" Rhys, his fencing instructor, caught up with him at the back doors. 

Laughing, Harry answered, "Don't you recognize it? That's the sword I found in the cave. Weren't you there when McGonagall was talking about it? That's the first day I met you." 

Frowning, Harry looked at the broken doors. "I suppose I better tell someone. Even with a repair spell, they'll want to know. Filch will be furious if he has to replace these. _Reparo_!" The two young men jumped back as the doors magically rejoined their hinges. 

"They look all right for now," Harry said. As he turned, he saw Rhys reaching for the handle of his sword. Before he could yell, "No!" Rhys had grabbed the hilt. 

"Arghh," the fencing instructor fell to his knees in pain. Dropping the sword, he clutched his hand. "What is it? Did you charm it to sting like that?" 

"No. Of course not. I'm so sorry. I should have warned you. It came that way. I'm the only one who could pick it up. That's why I got to keep it. Are you going to be all right?" Harry's forehead was furrowed with concern. "Let me see your hand?" He took the other man's hand in both his own, muttering a healing charm as he rubbed the skin around the burn mark for a moment, then let go. 

"Wow, that's much better. You have a healing touch." Rhys was looking at Harry oddly. 

"Thanks. I'm just sorry about not warning you. Are you going to be able to work out today? Maybe we should call off the lesson." Harry had been looking forward to sparring with Rhys, but he didn't want him to be in further pain. 

"I'm all right now. Thanks." He looked like he wanted to say something else. 

"What is it?" Harry asked. "Is there something on my face?" He rubbed his cheek.

"I just don't know how to tell you this." Rhys shifted uncomfortably, keeping his eyes on the floor. 

Harry answered, "Ohwhatever it is, just say it." 

Rhys still seemed reluctant to speak. After a long pause, he said, "My brother was one of the Death Eaters who was captured yesterday along with Peter Pettigrew." The silence grew. 

Concealing his surprise, Harry answered softly, "Did you know about their plan?" 

Shaking his head, Rhys said, "No. Nothing. I didn't even know he was a Death Eateralthough I should have guessed. Maybe I shouldn't have come." He met Harry's stare, feeling like those green eyes could see right through him. 

After a few moments, Harry gave him a small smile. "You probably should have taken today off. This must have been a big shock for you."

Feeling relieved, but confused, Rhys stared at the younger man. He was amazed by his attitude. He'd just admitted that his brother was not only in league with Voldemort, but involved in the plot to kidnap and probably kill Harry. Sympathy had been the last thing he had expected.

As if he understood the question, Harry said, "I can see your arm is clear of the Dark Mark. You didn't have to tell me about your brother, but you did. Why shouldn't I trust you? Do you have other family?"

"Just a mother and a sister. They don't know about Tecwyn. We haven't heard from him in a while. He left to see the world right after he graduated from Hogwarts. Last we knew he was in Amsterdam. I took the fire call from the Ministry this morning, but I haven't had the heart to tell my Mum. Telling you was difficult, but telling her"

Rhys and Harry sat in the middle of the practice room until the light in the windows faded and the torch lights came on. They agreed to cancel the fencing lesson. Instead they just talked, getting to know each other better and speculating about what would happen to the captured Death Eaters. 

Talking with Rhys for so long made Harry miss dinner. He wasn't hungry anyway. It had been a busy day and he still had detention with Snape. He climbed the stairs to the tower feeling exhausted and overwhelmed. He knew that the large pile of homework on his desk hadn't shrunk while he covered the Defense classes all day. At least it was the weekend.

The common room was alive with noise and confusion. He smiled as he noticed that Ron and Hermione were at their usual place near the fire. A bright flash of red hair caught his attention as he noticed Ginny flanked by Colin and Dennis Creevey. They were playing Exploding Snap at a table by the window. 

Ginny didn't see Harry heading straight for them because the cards near her had begun to smoke. "Dennis, help! It's your turn. Save me..." She laughed delightedly as the deck exploded, showering her with soot. 

Harry laughed with her. 

"Good timing, Harry. Did you make that deck explode?" Ginny smiled at him. 

"Wasn't me. I just got here. Must have been a Creevey." Harry said as Dennis and Colin looked less than impressed with the attention Ginny was giving the newcomer. 

Harry joined their game for a couple of rounds. He couldn't remember the last time he'd played Exploding Snap. Ron and Hermione came over and watched. For at least a short while, Harry relaxed and enjoyed some time with friends. It didn't hurt that one of them was Ginny. 

"Do you want to play another game, Harry?" she asked. 

Looking into her shining brown eyes, Harry wished he could stay, but he reluctantly answered, "No, I still have detention with Snape. In fact, I better go. Wouldn't do to be late. He's already mad because I missed it last night."

Ginny glanced around the table briefly at the Creeveys, Ron and Hermione, suddenly wishing they would disappear. It was frustrating. She had so much to say to Harry, but she didn't know where to begin or how to phrase things. 

Instead Harry disappeared off to the dungeons to find Snape. The halls were deserted. Harry didn't even encounter one of the ghosts as he wound his way into the belly of the castle. The door to the Potions classroom was open and light shone into the corridor. 

"Professor Snape?" Harry called. There was no answer. The room seemed empty. He moved toward the open door to Snape's office. 

When he'd almost reached the entry, he heard a deep voice behind him say, "Stay out of there, Potter. My private stores are off limits to you." Professor Snape stepped out of the shadows in the back of the classroom. 

"Sorry, Professor. I didn't see you there." Harry was determined to maintain a polite tone. 

"I heard you calling, Potter, but I was in the midst of counting jars and didn't want to start over just for the pleasure of jumping when you called." Snape wasn't going to make being polite easy. 

Seeing that Harry wasn't going to rise to the bait, Snape said, "The cauldrons by the fire need scrubbing, Harry — the Muggle way. No scouring charms allowed." He folded his arms and stared at Harry as though he'd lit a fuse and now expected the young man to explode.

"Thank you, Sir," Harry answered. It took a supreme effort to keep the sarcasm out of his tone. 

Frowning, Snape returned to the desk at the front of the room and Harry settled into scrubbing. They both worked in silence for an hour. Harry was almost finished with the cauldrons. Behind him, he could hear the scratch of Snape's quill. 

As he reached the end of his detention, Harry was startled to find Snape standing right behind him. Momentarily thrown, Harry paused in his work and looked worriedly over his shoulder.

Quietly, Snape said, "Don't turn around, Potter. Keep cleaning and act as though I'm simply inspecting your work. The walls have ears, Potter, and I needed to speak with you alone. There's something you need to know." 

Harry wondered briefly if that meant that Snape gave him an unwarranted detention on purpose so that he could speak to him without raising suspicion. Raising whose suspicion? 

"Voldemort is out for your blood. Literally. He needs your blood. That is why he is trying to kidnap you." Snape said quietly. 

"Do you mean he's become a vampire or something? Why would he just need my blood?" Harry asked, confused.

Snape answered. "I'm not sure. It has nothing to do with nourishment or the fact that he used your blood to regain his body. He needs your blood to find something." 

Harry didn't know what to say. He could only think of more questions. 

"What do you know about Blood Charms, Potter?" Snape asked as he held up one of the cauldrons Harry had finished cleaning and handed it back to him. 

Before Harry could answer, someone coughed loudly behind them. Pansy Parkinson and Draco Malfoy stood at the entrance to the Potions classroom looking amused. 

Snape smiled at the Slytherins and said, "Out for a Friday night date? How charming."

Giving Harry a withering look, Malfoy said, "I came by to see if you have that Potion we discussed, Professor." 

Snape turned to Harry and said, "You're dismissed, Potter."

Harry took off toward the door. 

As he passed Draco and Pansy, he heard Snape say, "As I told you earlier, I cannot possible provide such a Potion for you." Malfoy didn't look pleased.

The pre-dawn sun lit the mist rising off the lake just enough to make everything a pale blue. The air smelled clean and fresh. Harry kept running at a brisk pace winding around the path near the lake. As the sun rose in earnest, he ran back up the hill toward the castle. It was easy to forget that an evil wizard wanted to kill him on a morning like this. 

The only thing on Harry's mind was going to Hogsmeade with his friends. Maybe it wasn't a real date, but it would be like it was at the Burrow last August. Ginny and he would finally have some time alone. Ron and Hermione would be too caught up with each other to notice. 

Quickly showering, Harry spent some extra time trying to get his hair to lay flat. As usual, it was a lost cause. He put on some of the new Muggle clothes he'd purchased last summer and a clean robe. Feeling like he'd done what he could to make himself presentable, he hurried to breakfast. 

His friends were already eating. Harry slid into the seat beside Ginny. His heart filled with happiness when she smiled shyly at him, and said, "Good morning, Harry." She looked like her usual beautiful self. Her hair was pulled up into a ponytail, the way he liked it best with the little curly tendrils showing along her neck. She wore blue jeans and a tailored white shirt under her Hogwarts robe.

"Did everyone sleep well?" Harry asked as he enthusiastically helped himself to breakfast food. This was a beautiful day and he was going to spend it with a beautiful girl. Somewhere, he just knew Sirius was smiling at him.

Ginny's fan club was circling. Dean slowed as he passed her and gave a silent wave before moving to the other end of the table. Colin Creevey and Harold Dingle sat opposite her. Was it Harry's imagination or did Harold and Ginny exchange quiet looks as though they'd just asked and answered a question. Harry shook his head. He must have imagined it. They weren't exactly friends.

Harold Dingle was a Gryffindor seventh year who was well known for supplying the younger students with Firewhiskey and other banned substances. Why would Ginny want anything like that? Besides, Harold had been going out with Heather MacNaughton for ages.

Thoughts of Harold Dingle were forgotten as Michael Corner came up and tapped Ginny on the shoulder. "Can I talk to you for a moment, Ginny?" he asked. 

Harry was shocked. I'm sitting right here!' he thought. Then he remembered that he'd kept all his emotions to himself. Everyone thought he was just Ginny's brother's friend. Ginny didn't even know how he really felt. Telling himself he had no right to be upset, he focused on letting go of the jealous feelings that threatened to overwhelm him. It helped, but he still didn't trust himself to speak.

"Sure, Michael. What is it?" answered Ginny.

"Privately. Could we talk privately?" he began to turn red.

Ginny looked at Harry whose face had become a mask of calm. She couldn't tell what he was thinking. She sighed and said, "Sure, we can step into the entryway." As she followed Michael to the doors of the Great Hall, she looked back over her shoulder at Harry. He was staring darkly at her retreating figure. 

"They don't even let her eat breakfast," complained Ron. He was staring at Harry, thinking, Why don't you put a stop to all of this? Tell her how you feel. Chase these guys away.' Testing the twins' new invention, Talking Truth Taffy, on Harry was beginning to seem like a good idea. 

Hermione watched Ron practically glaring at Harry and shook her head.

Exasperated, Ron asked, "What? Can you believe the nerve of that guy?" 

Harry looked at his best friend and thought, Ron doesn't think anyone is good enough for Ginny. What would he think if he knew how I really feel?' Aloud he said, "When do you two want to leave?" He hesitated and then continued, "That's if you still want to go. Tell you what, if Ginny doesn't come back. You two go on alone. I have plenty of studying to do today."

Hermione studied Harry's unruffled face. She thought she understood his mask of indifference. She'd seen the way he looked at Ginny when he thought no one could see. For one of the most powerful wizards alive, he could be incredibly insecure. And he didn't seem to have any idea how he affected Ginny. With a sympathetic look, she said, "What are you on about, Harry? She'll be back in a moment."

"Of course, she will," added Ron. 

Just then, a loud roar came from the crowd at the Slytherin table. Fifteen or so Slytherin students crowded around each other. Harry glanced over to see what was causing the commotion. 

Snape was hurrying over from the staff table. "What's the meaning of this?" he demanded. Turning to face their head of house were at least twelve students wearing the same face. Snape gasped. It was his face. While their heights and clothes varied, they all had the same greasy hair, black eyes and hooknose of the Potions Professor. 

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Snape asked, "Is this meant to be some form of flattery or have you all been the victims of a cruel hoax?" Pansy Parkinson burst into tears, her Snape-like face scrunched up. Two big, rather wide, Snapes shuffled their feet and patted her back trying to comfort her. 

"When I find out who's at the bottom of this, they'll be sorry." Snape was well known for his favoritism for members of his house. They could get away with any sort of cruel taunts, but he would punish anyone severely for embarrassing them.

Whether someone had muttered a quiet _Finite Incantatum! _or the charm had simply worn off, the Snape look alikes were changing back to their normal selves one by one. The excitement was over.

Ginny came back to the table with a big grin on her face. Is that smile because of Michael Corner,' Harry thought. He'd stopped worrying about Dean, now Michael Corner was back in the picture? She definitely raised her eyebrows at Harold Dingle as she caught his eye. Harold Dingle?' Harry's thoughts were running wild.

"Are you ready to go?" Ginny asked smoothly, looking at Ron and Hermione.

"As though we're the ones that have been holding things up. Any idea what happened over at the Slytherin table?" Ron asked his sister. 

Shrugging her shoulders, she stared at the floor. Then she turned to Hermione and asked, "Where do you want to go first?" 

As the group started toward Hogsmeade together, Harry felt a little self-conscious around Ginny. He couldn't help but wonder how she felt about him. She seemed to have so many boys that were just friends. 

Of course, she was great at putting him at ease. Soon he joined in the conversation. They shopped for school supplies and candy. Then Ginny and Hermione went into Madam Malkin's to look at robes while Harry and Ron went into the Quidditch supply store. The village seemed to be full of people today, not just students. Harry wondered if Aurors or perhaps members of the Order were on hand in case of trouble. 

Mr. Zonko recognized Ginny and Ron when they came into his joke store. "Checking out the competition, eh? How are your brothers? Out of good ideas already? Well, I can sell you these new Dry-Start Flying Fizzies. Not as dramatic as fireworks, but just as guaranteed to stop class. Great for getting out of boring lectures."

Ron answered, "Thanks, we're just looking." Ron and Hermione both looked a little uncomfortable about spying on the nice shopkeeper.

Mr. Zonko moved over to Harry and Ginny. "Mr. Potter. I hear you have a financial interest in Fred and George's establishment. Is the rumor true? Would you like to invest in their competition? Hedge your investment?" Mr. Zonko didn't really want Harry's money. He just wanted to gauge the young man's reaction to find out if he really had given the twins their start. He liked the twins and respected Harry for helping them -- if it was true. 

Thinking that here was proof positive that nothing was secret in the wizarding world, Harry looked at the floor and stammered. "II'm sure I don't know where you get your information, sir. I don't have any money to invest." Recovering slightly, he said, "Besides, business appears to be booming for you." He began to look around for something to buy. 

Ginny nodded her approval. She had chosen several things for purchase. "I'm still a customer, Mr. Zonko," she said cheerfully, adding some purple Dry-Start Flying Fizzies to her pile.

Back on the street, they decided to head over to the Three Broomsticks. It was long past lunchtime and they were hungry. As they moved down the street, they heard a drawl behind them, "You won't get away with it, Weasley. Professor Snape is going to find proof."

They turned to see the usual gang from Slytherin plus a pouting Pansy Parkinson. Ron set his feet apart, drew his chest up and looked down his nose at the much smaller Draco Malfoy. "Can't you just leave us alone, Malfoy? Must you lurk around every cornerGet away with what? I have no idea what you're talking about and I don't want to know. We were having a nice day without you." 

"I don't mean you Weasley, I'm talking to your sister -- the prankster. You think you can make fun of us and just walk away? That's not how things work in Slytherin House." Crabbe and Goyle were standing on either side of Malfoy trying to mirror his sneer with their facial expressions. 

Ginny burst out laughing. "You're saying you're afraid of me, Malfoy? What could you possibly fear from me, the youngest of the Weasleys? What am I supposed to have done?" Her giggle was infectious. Harry and Ron smiled back at the Slytherin gang. 

"You know what you did. There's no sense denying it. Watch your back, Weasley." Malfoy was getting redder in the face. 

Hermione had watched the whole interchange without smiling. She said, "That's a threat, Malfoy. I'm reporting you to Snape and McGonagall. You can't go around threatening people even if you aren't a prefect anymore." Malfoy had lost his prefect status after Ernie MacMillan and several other D.A. members complained that they had to stop him from attacking Harry on the train ride home last year.

"We're going now. Have a nice day!" Harry said as he waved his hand and muttered something. The four Slytherin students remained frozen on the sidewalk as they moved away. 

"And what spell was that, Harry." Ron just loved all the new defensive spells that Harry was learning from Professor Moody. 

"_Tempus Freezus!_" Harry said. "They're frozen, but only for a moment or two -- a minute at the most. Long enough for us to get away without worrying about Ginny's back, anyway. What did you supposedly do to them?" 

"They must think I had something to do with this morning's prankActually, I'm calling it Ode to Snape'. It's performance art really." She had a self-satisfied grin plastered onto her face.

"So you are responsible for the Snape look alike contest at breakfast," said Hermione. "I wondered. And you had Harold Dingle help you somehow." Nothing gets by Hermione. 

Ginny giggled and said, "He slipped a new Fred and George product into their hangover potion. Apparently there are a lot of drunk Slytherins on Friday nights. Harold sells them the Firewhiskey and the morning after potion. I'm surprised they figured out I had anything to do with it. I thought they'd just blame poor Harold. They can't accuse him openly because then they would have to admit to drinking." Ginny had thought this through. She couldn't read the look Harry was giving her — an odd mixture of admiration and relief.

Ron said, "Awesome, Ginny. Fred and George will be so proud. The tradition lives on. Why Snape? I can't see that catching on. Why not develop a charm to make people look like Celestina Warbeck or someone like that?" He couldn't see someone taking a Snape look alike potion on purpose.

Ginny answered, "The same potion will work for anybody. You can use any person that you want. It isn't as good as Polyjuice obviously. It only changes hair and facial features for a few minutes. Fun at parties, don't you think?" Ron nodded in agreement.

Hermione wasn't happy. Ginny and Ron were acting like they were discussing the weather. "Do you ever think like a prefect, Ron? You shouldn't be condoning this. She could get in a lot of trouble for a prank like this. And you, don't you ever get tired of detention?" 

Ginny was in detention at least once a week for her various pranks. The only teacher who never gave her detention was Professor Flitwick, the Charms teacher, who seemed genuinely pleased that she had developed some of Fred and George's skills. 

Ron looked hurt by Hermione's admonition. She hadn't been lecturing him as much this year. "You're not suggesting we tell on my sister. Are you, Hermione? Because there's such a thing as loyalty. Ginny's family. I seem to remember a real Polyjuice Potion incident." 

"Oh, Ron. I'm not going to tell on her. You're right, our Polyjuice escapade broke more rules than this. I just worry. Malfoy is mean and much angrier than he used to be. I think he's capable of doing something really bad. We should keep an eye on him." Hermione slipped her hand into Ron's as she spoke. Reaching up on tiptoe, she gave him a swift kiss on the cheek. 

They reached the Three Broomsticks. It was still crowded with Hogwarts students despite the fact that it was after lunch. 

Since there were no free tables, the group joined some other Gryffindor's by the window. Neville, Dean, Seamus, Lavender and Parvati had been drinking butterbeers since noon. Madam Rosmerta came over and took their lunch order. 

Dean made Seamus trade places with him so he could sit next to Ginny. Here we go again,' thought Harry. Dean was whispering something in her ear. Harry fumed, wishing he could think of something to whisper so he could have his lips that close to Ginny's ear.

An owl arrived for Harry. He used the excuse to leave the table, not wanting to watch Ginny with Dean any longer. Stopping near the entrance doors to open the envelope he'd just received, he felt Ron's hand on his shoulder. 

"Harry, stop. Why are you leaving? Don't give up so easi" Ron's voice was cut off in mid-sentence as both boys disappeared. 

A Portkey, someone had sent him a Portkey. Feeling that familiar, nauseating tug on his navel, Harry sensed that Ron was coming with him. He had been touching his shoulder at just the right moment. Or was it the wrong moment?

The boys landed in a bare, stone room with an iron door. Dim light came from a barred window high above. They seemed to be alone. Harry moved quickly, dropping the letter he had been holding, and then grabbing Ron's hand and picking it up again. He hoped to reactivate the Portkey. Nothing happened. 

Ron mouthed the words, "Wands ready?" 

Harry nodded. His friend's words were reminiscent of Cedric's in the graveyard. He quickly put a Disillusionment Charm on Ron, then himself. 

Ron's eyes widened as he felt the cold slip down his spine. Then he understood as he watched the spell turn Harry into a chameleon. Now they both blended into their surroundings. 

They checked the door. It was locked. Harry whispered, "_Alohamora!_" Nothing. It was still locked. They must be warded inside the cellar. 

He felt Harry's hand lead him against a far wall. For an hour or more, they waited in silence, leaning against the cold stone. Finally, they heard footsteps and voices approaching the door. 

"When do you think our letter will be delivered, Jonathan?" a reed thin voice asked as they heard a key turn in the lock. 

"Soon. We should get ready for him. If we can capture him, they can't refuse to make us Death Eaters," said a second voice. 

Death Eater wannabees? Whatever next!' Harry thought. As the two men entered the cellar where he and Ron were hiding, they noticed the letter they had sent as a Portkey on the floor. "It didn't work!" said the reedy voiced boy. He was rather short.

"Yes it did. It's here. Isn't it? Wha" the taller boy said, looking confused. 

Harry elbowed Ron and yelled, "_Stupefy!_" aiming his hand at the brains of the outfit. Jonathan dropped like a stone. 

Ron dropped the other boy with his own stunner.

They looked down at the two unconscious boys. Neither looked to be more than twenty. Harry quickly put his own locking spell on the door and a silencing charm on the room. He bound and gagged both of their would-be kidnappers and said, "You don't happen to have a Portkey on you, do you, Ron?" 

Ron laughed, keeping his wand pointed at the unconscious kidnappers. "I left all my Portkeys in my other robes, Harry. Any ideas?" 

Harry removed their Disillusionment Charms and pulled a mirror from his pocket. "I have a few tricks up my sleeve. Hang on." Clearly and distinctly, he said, "Ginny Weasley."

Back at Hogwarts, Ginny and Hermione had not had an easy afternoon. When Ron and Harry disappeared right in front of their eyes, they had been the only ones to notice. Ginny had been watching Harry's retreating figure and Ron's chase. Hermione had seen it, too. 

At first, no one believed them. The students closest to the door said they thought the boys had just gone up the stairs. Ginny had her hands on her hips and was about to let them have it when Professor Moody appeared and said, "I saw it, ladies. I've been keeping an eye on things from outside." Moody's magical eye could see through the walls of the pub. "We'd best get back to Hogwarts and see what Dumbledore makes of this."

They were silent as they walked past the gargoyle guarding his office. When they were seated, the Headmaster said calmly, "So, do you have something you wish to tell me?" They both gave vivid descriptions of the disappearance. Ginny mentioned that Harry had just received an owl. 

"Thank you, girls. You may wait here until we receive word. Were you able to finish your lunch? I can arrange for a tray." The Headmaster was really good in a crisis. 

Both girls politely declined. 

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he said, "There appear to be a number of concerned friends waiting outside my office with your things. I believe Mr. Thomas has your rucksack and packages, Miss Weasley. Would you like to await news back in the common room since so many seem to want to join your vigil?" 

"Maybe I could just go get my bags, Professor. If it's all right with you, I'd like to stay here. You'll know what's happened before anyone." She was too upset to hide her feelings well. The boys could be dead. She was panicking. 

Dumbledore smiled sympathetically. "Allow me to retrieve your things for you." With a wave of his hand, he produced a cup of tea, "I think you should drink this. As I said, I'm glad for you to wait here in my office for word about your brother and Harry. I will be contacting your parents." He left them alone for a few minutes. 

Ginny looked around his office, setting the teacup down on a nearby table with shaky hands. The portraits of former headmasters seemed to be sleeping, some snoring quite spectacularly. Her mind was racing. What could she do? How could she find them? 

Seeing how uneasy her friend was, Hermione said, "We can't do anything right now except wait. Dumbledore's right. You should drink the tea." Hermione suspected that he had put a calming draught in it for her.

"Do you have ice in your veins, Hermione? I can barely think They could be dead! Right now We could have lost them forever." She was concentrating on breathing slowly so she wouldn't hyperventilate.

"OhI know, GinnyIt's justwell, we can't believe the worst until we have more information. Dumbledore doesn't seem all that worried. He probably knows when to panic. As long as Dumbledore's calm, we should be calm." She hoped all of that was true. 

Maintaining his steady demeanor, the Headmaster returned carrying both girl's packages, as well as Ron and Harry's things. "Since we may be in for a long wait, what would help pass the time? Do you want to talk or perhaps read?" Dumbledore asked kindly, indicating his bookshelf. Both girls chose books and pretended to read. 

The next hour passed slowly. The girls stared at their books and tortured themselves with "what ifs." 

Dumbledore heard his name being called from the fireplace and went to answer it. Watching Dumbledore kneel into the fireplace, Hermione shrugged her shoulders at Ginny as if to say, "I have no idea what he is doing." 

When he returned to his desk, he explained, "When Remus Lupin went missing last August, we found him with the help of a little mirror that Sirius had charmed to communicate with Harry." Both girls already knew this story. They looked at the Headmaster expecting more. "He still hasn't heard anything yet, but I asked Remus to keep checking in. He's every bit as worried as we are."

After a moment, Ginny said excitedly, "Of course! How stupid of me! Harry could use the mirror to contact us." She stuck a hand inside her small rucksack to finger the little mirror she shared with Harry.

Amused, Dumbledore asked, "Do you have something to tell us, Miss Weasley?"

Hermione watched her friend, thinking she was acting peculiar. Didn't she realize that this was bad news? If Harry hadn't contacted Remus yet, that meant the two boys were in some difficulty or had been killed the moment they arrived wherever that Portkey had taken them. She didn't trust herself to speak. 

Palming the little mirror, Ginny excused herself to go to the loo. Dumbledore indicated a private door. Once inside, she said very clearly into her mirror, "Harry Potter." Nothing. No sound. No Harry's nose. Nothing. Tears began to pour down her face. He must be gone. She stared in the mirror for a long time. 

"Ginny Weasley?" she startled at the sound. Wiping her cheeks, she answered her mirror.

Smiling at her excitement, Harry explained their predicament. "If we can find a fireplace, I have some floo powder. Are you still in the Three Broomsticks?" 

Ginny laughed softly through her tears. "No, of course not, we raised the roof when you disappeared. People are looking for you everywhere. We're back at Dumbledore's office. II'm in the loo." She finished shyly.

Harry bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. Instead he said, "Do you think you could hand the mirror to Professor Dumbledore, Ginny?" 

Ginny paused. "Shouldn't I just relay the message, Harry? If I give him the mirror, then they'll all know we have them. I think enchanted two-way mirrors are on the list of 745 banned items that are posted on Filch's door." 

"I didn't think anyone ever read that listDon't worry. If they confiscate these, we'll just enchant new mirrors." She could see Harry grinning.

Ginny shook her head and scolded, "You need to focus, Harry. You're not out of trouble yet." 

"Constant Vigiliance! I never thought I'd hear that from you." Harry was still giving her that grin, the one that made her insides melt.

She took a deep breath and agreed to give the mirror to Dumbledore.

"Our cover is blown anyway, Gin. Ron is standing right next to me wondering how I was able to contact his little sister so easily." Ginny cringed at the little sister' remark. But she left the bathroom with the mirror still activated. 

Hermione couldn't believe that Ginny came out of the bathroom with her hand mirror. Of all the times to worry about her appearance. 

Ginny smiled at Hermione, but addressed the Headmaster, "ErSir, Harry has been able to contact us." Her heart showed in her eyes.

Dumbledore took the mirror without comment, but his eyes were twinkling merrily as he took the mirror from her and spoke with Harry. 

At Moody's suggestion, Harry carried emergency floo powder. He had enough for all of them. Opening the door of the cell, they levitated their prisoners and walked cautiously down a narrow hall and up some stairs, passing several empty rooms. They seemed to be alone in some sort of stone farmhouse. The stairs led to a room with a large table and a dozen chairs. It also had a large fireplace.

Glad they hadn't met anyone else. They each grabbed some floo powder and an unconscious prisoner. In turn they stepped into the fireplace and shouted, "Hogwart's Headmaster's Office!" 

A relieved Ginny and Hermione greeted them as they came through Dumbledore's fireplace. The teenagers were exhilarated at the ease of their escape. Kingsley Shacklebolt was there within a few minutes to take custody of their prisoners. He left with them quickly, promising to come back soon to take their statements. 

"Perhaps I could contact Remus, Professor Dumbledore. May I use your floo? He's probably really worried." As Harry explained to Remus what had transpired, Ron joined him in the fire. 

Ron snorted. "It was a walk in the park. Harry hid us before those bumbling fools even showed up. Even if they'd been real Death Eaters, we could have taken them. Some first date, huh, Harry."

Remus' eyes widened with interest. "You were kidnapped while you were on a date, Harry?"

"Ron was on the date. I was just tagging along." Harry shifted uncomfortably. He wondered if Ginny was listening. She and Hermione were still conversing with Professor Dumbledore.

"You just wanted it to be a date. Right, Harry?" Ron teased. It wasn't lost on him that Harry and Ginny had been contacting each other through those little mirrors for who knows how long. He was delighted. 

Embarrassed and worried about being overheard, Harry promised to owl Remus in the morning with more details. 

Ron positively beamed as he rejoined Hermione. They all knew this kidnapping attempt was nothing to get upset over. They'd been in more difficult scrapes. 

Dumbledore said, "Two kidnapping attempts foiled in just a few days. I think that's cause for celebration. Perhaps the Gryffindor common room would be a good place for a welcome back celebration -- a feast."

"Thanks, but I think everyone's tired after their ordeal." Hermione's forehead was knitted into a frown. 

"Nonsense, 'Mione," said Ron. "It's Saturday night. We can rest tomorrow." 

Hesitantly, Harry sat down next to Ginny. She smiled at him. "I'm so glad to see you, Harry." Her heart was in her eyes again. 

He took her hand in his, staring back at her. "I'm always glad to see you, Ginny," he said softly. 

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Did either of you find out who your captors were?" he asked. 

Ron answered, "Two young men rejected by their local Death Eaters. They hoped to capture Harry and deliver him to You Know Who in exchange for membership in his ranks. Who knows what they thought they'd get in return? Power? Money?"

Harry shook his head and said, "If Voldemort has a price on my head, I should expect this sort of attack more often. I shudder to think what Professor Moody will have to say." 

Remembering what Snape had said about Voldemort wanting his blood, Harry thought about asking Dumbledore what that could mean, but just then Kingsley Shacklebolt returned. Dumbledore smiled as the teenagers explained the whole story. They agreed to keep most of the details of their experience to themselves. No sense giving anyone ideas. The Auror promised to do what he could to keep the story out of the Daily Prophet although it would be difficult since this was the second kidnapping attempt in one week.

Back in Gryffindor tower, all of their friends had been waiting. Seamus had transfigured water into an interesting, if weak, rum punch which most of the upper classmen in the crowd had been sampling. As they came through the portrait hole, the crowd cheered. 

Ron was glad to see that the Fred and George tradition of Gryffindor rule breaking hadn't departed with his brothers. Hermione relaxed when she saw his enthusiasm. After all, she could have lost him today. If necessary, she could plead ignorance tomorrow. Tonight, they should have a little fun. He draped one strong arm across her shoulders and kept it there for most of the evening. 

The party was loud. By eleven, Hermione made everyone under fourth year go to bed, but the remaining students made up for it by beginning to sing. Seamus started it. Apparently in his family there was a large selection of traditional Irish drinking songs. A few of the other students knew some of the words. Most had had so much punch that they didn't care whether or not they knew the words, they sang anyway. 

Harry was fairly quiet. He was counting his blessings. Glad to be alive. Glad to be back at Hogwarts. Ginny kept getting pulled away from his side although Harry never took his eyes off of her. Harold and Neville insisted they needed an impartial referee in their game of Exploding Snap. Colin Creevey and another blond fifth year named Clive Burroughs wanted her to decide who had the best hair. 

Ginny was the life of the party. It was her idea for all the singers to compete for the Gryffindor marshmallow cup, a quick trophy pulled from the refreshment table. Watching her having fun, Harry was struck by how many people must feel the same thing he felt for her. 

She was wonderful. People couldn't help but adore her. She smiled at him from across the room and wiggled what looked like a Canary Cream behind her back before suggesting to Seamus that he have a quick bite of sandwich before singing his next song. Of course he loved her, it looked to him like everyone did.

****

To be continued.

Notes to reviewers: 

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Nightwing 509: Thanks for all of your comments! I will try to update quickly. 

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Gryphonmistress: Thanks for reading and reviewing!

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hart-break: You should write the story of Peter being haunted. Good story idea! Thanks for writing a review. It makes a difference to hear from people.

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athenakitty: I'm going to have to figure out that infertility spell. Thanks for your review!

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Jaquelyne: Thanks, as always, for reading and reviewing. Famtabulous is such a great word. Next chapter, Harry is going to start trying to tell Ginny how he feels, but as so often happens in life, events and people conspire against him. Nowdon't you have a story to update?

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Lily and James Potter: OK, Lily it is! I like the MWPP era as well. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

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bEaNZ: Good luck to you, too!

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HappySnakes Rule: I like Tonks for Remus, too. Like Harry, he needs someone to cheer him up. Tonks is such a fun character. Thanks for writing!

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Lord of Darkness13: Thanks for reading and reviewing! It really does help.

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Pegasus: Thanks for your kind comments. My own Monday's often need brightening. Thanks for your review!

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Lourdes1: You always think of something nice to say. Thanks for reviewing! 

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Charmone: I'm not convinced you meant to be helpful, but thanks for your trouble. 

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Wildcat: Thanks for your comments. When I read your review, I needed some encouragement so I really appreciate you taking the time.

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KEmperor: Thanks for your enthusiasm. I hope you continue to enjoy the story. And I won't be abandoning it. The original storyboard has about ten more chapters. Thanks for reviewing!

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Charybdis2: I loved your MARMITE suggestion. I have a friend who lived in Britain for about a year and she appreciated it, too. Thanks for brightening my day! 

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dragonclawz54: Thanks for writing! Another Remus and Tonks fan! Thanks for saying the Voldy/ silver hand/ Portkey plot was believable enough. I think he's capable of many complicated and tricky things. He's just so deliciously evil. 

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aschowin: Thank you for your review! I'm glad you like the plot. You are very kind. 

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	16. A Place in the World

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Sorry for the delay in updating! First my favorite computer died. Luckily I have this old laptop. Then I injured both hands in a freakish accident. Since they say bad news usually comes in threes, I've been afraid to leave the house. Anyway, the splint is off my right hand so here's the next chapter. 

Notes to reviewers are at the end of the story. Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read and review! 

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Chapter Sixteen

A Place in the World

A bright star hung low on the horizon. The moon was barely a sliver. Looking out at the Forbidden Forest, Harry could see the pale specter of an occasional Thestral spread its wings above the trees. He wondered what else lurked within the shadows. 

Sitting across the common room, Ginny watched him stare out at the night sky, back straight, head held high -- yet his face seemed devoid of hope. His eyes darkened as though he looked on the future and saw nothing like a condemned man with no escape. 

It was fairly early on a school night. Students were gathered in the common room bent over parchment and books. Ron was out on his prefect rounds and Hermione was off with her advanced study group in the Arithmancy classroom.

Ginny walked over to Harry. Wherever his mind had wandered, she wanted to follow. After the kidnapping incident, she was determined. She was tired of him leaving her behind. She wasn't going to let it happen again. "I thought you dropped Astronomy, Harry," she said softly as she joined him at the window.

The sound of her sweet voice acted like a spark, warming his face until a small smile appeared. "I'm just thinking," he said. 

"Whatever it is, you can tell me." 

"Just thinking about the prophecyI don't want to be a murderer. What ifwhat if I do kill Voldemort? Doesn't that make me just like him? And if I don't kill him, I may have no future at all. What kind of world is this anyway? And why do I have to be the one to change it?" He stared back at the dark night. 

Ginny sighed and said, "You're never going to be like You Know Who. You're the opposite of him. And remember, I knew him when" Her speech had started off cheerfully, but her voice trailed off. 

Watching her expression change, Harry said, "SorryWho'd know better than you what the real Tom Riddle was like?" 

Ginny continued. "Do you think he ever sat around wondering if he was doing the right thing? Besides, he was a Slytherin." 

"The Sorting Hat wanted me to be in Slytherin. It only put me in Gryffindor because I asked it to." Harry shook his head.

"So you're here by choice — and a good choice it was considering that we're going to beat those Slytherins next Saturday." Ginny smiled and sat down on the windowsill in front of Harry. 

"I wonder sometimes if pitting the houses against each other is such a good idea. I meanwhile I think we should definitely flatten the Slytherins at QuidditchHow are we supposed to find ways to get along if everything we do in school keeps us apart? Never mind. I'm not sure what I mean or how to change any of that." 

Ginny arched one eyebrow and said, "You worry too much, Harry. You don't have to change the world. Do you think the Slytherins sit around wondering about inter-house unity? Imagine Crabbe and Goyle lounging around their common room looking out at the moon, trying to think of ways to reach out to the Hufflepuffs." 

Harry laughed softly. "Maybe some Death Eater children are a lost cause. Does that mean all Slytherins are evil?"

"Is this your way of saying you disapprove of my pranking?" Ginny seemed a little anxious.

Harry grinned. He loved the little frown line that appeared between her eyes. "Not at all. I admire your pranks, Gin. We need a little fun in our lives" 

"But?" she asked expectantly. 

"But I remember how it feels to bear the brunt of someone else's fun. Dudley and his friends never spared a thought for how I felt." His admiring smile reassured her. "Your pranks are different. You're not trying to hurt anyone. The Snape look alike contest was inspired. And I still want to know how you convinced Peeves to follow Pansy Parkinson around the other day singing that silly love songMalfoy and his cronies deserve anything we dish out, but some of the Slytherins are just caught in the crossfire." 

"So you're saying I should only target known evil doers." Ginny laughed as she spoke. 

Harry's smile widened into a grin. "Something like that. You do have a talent for pranks." 

"So do you have someone in mind for my next victim, Harry?" Ginny asked sweetly. 

"I'm not sure I should tell you, Gin." Harry said. 

Relaxed in each other's company, the two teenagers laughed and talked quietly for a while. As the common room door opened, they moved apart. It was only two seventh years they didn't know very well, but they moved to a table and settled in to get some homework done.

The next person to enter the common room was Ron. He didn't look very happy. "Stupid Slytherins!" he shouted as he slammed his book bag down on the table. 

Harry grabbed his bottle of ink as it jumped in response. "What happened — or do we really want to know?"

"Look at my prefect badge!" shouted Ron. The badge was flashing the word, PERFECT' alternating with a picture of a naked man. "And it won't come off my robe!" Noticing that Ginny was squinting her eyes to take a closer look, Ron clasped his hand over the badge.

Hiding her amusement, Ginny said sympathetically, "Ahwell, maybe it will wear off by morning. It was put on by a Slytherin after all." She looked at Harry and raised both eyebrows as if to say, so much for inter-house unity.' 

Harry nodded in agreement. "Maybe the best thing you could do is let the spell wear offThey may have charmed it to do something else if you try to remove it." 

"Like what?" asked Ron.

"I don't know. Maybe it will start singing or something. Why don't you just take the robe off for tonight?" 

"I guess you're right" Ron grumbled as threw his robe down in a heap and joined them at the table.

A few minutes later, Colin Creevey and another fifth year asked Ginny to help them with their Charms homework. As she went with them to a table on the other side of the common room, Harry followed her with his eyes. 

"What's on your mind, Harry?" Ron asked, his voice uncharacteristically solemn as he noticed his friend watching his sister. Ron thought he sensed desperation in Harry's expression. 

Confused, Harry answered just as solemnly, "I want to find a place in the world that doesn't involve me killing someoneMaybe I ought to rethink my career objectives." He said this last with a wry smile and returned to writing his Tranfiguration essay.

Since Harry had been looking at Ginny, Ron assumed that he was thinking about her. Switching gears, Ron asked, "And why would you have to kill someone? Oh, you must be thinking about the kidnapping." 

"Never mind, Ron. Forget itI have to finish this essay for McGonagall. Let's just work" Harry started scratching with his quill. 

Seeing that Harry wasn't going to explain, Ron focused on his own homework. Neither friend tried to open up a conversation. The evening wore on and the common room cleared out. Colin and the others went to bed, but Ginny was still working at the far table. 

A commotion near the common room door heralded Hermione's arrival. She breezed over to her friends and said, "Well, here's where you're hiding. I've been looking all over for you."

Ron launched into a tirade. "Like where've you looked? Of course we're here. We're here just about every night. Anyway, it's latewhere've you been?" 

Out of breath from running upstairs, Hermione rolled her eyes and held up her hand. "Oh, Ron. I told you the Arithmancy group was tonight. Anyway, I meant I've been looking for Harry. I thought you might be practicing your fencing, so when you weren't in the library, I checked the practice roomthen the Defense classroom. I figured you'd still be out on your prefect rounds, Ron." She smiled sweetly at her boyfriend.

Seeing Ron calm down, she leaned over and quickly kissed his cheek. Red-faced, he asked, "So what's the excitement? What's in the book?"

"This is _Myrddin: The Man Behind the Magic._ I've been trying to find any mention of Merlin ever having children -- to see if there's evidence of a direct connection between the Potters and Merlin. So far I've found nothing about children, he certainly never married, but I might have found a reference to the cave you visited last summer, Harry." She sat down at the nearest chair and opened the book up to show the illustration inside. Harry and Ron stood next to her and leaned over her shoulders to get a good look at the picture. 

Harry said, "It looks like the same hillside, but there must be thousands of hills in Wales that look the same. I can't be sure."

Hermione read aloud. "In the end, the magic of Merlin was broken. He fell under the spell of the young enchantress Niniane. She used her wiles to persuade him to teach her all of his secrets. In the end, she tired of him and used the knowledge he'd given her to trap him inside a cave, thus ending his life." The room was silent. 

Ron broke the stillness. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Harry?"

"Probably not, Ron." He sensed his friend's excitement, but he wasn't sure of the cause. None of this was news to Harry.

"Maybe Merlin is trapped in that old cave you foundI mean, Lupin was trapped there." 

Always the voice of reason, Hermione said, "Merlin lived centuries ago. How could anyone still be alive after all this time? We don't even know if it's the same cave."

Harry shook his head. "Ginny and I read that bit about Merlin in that other book you found, Hermione. I don't see how any of that helps. We still don't know what the Potter connection is to Merlin's Den. And there's still nothing about a torch. Even if it was possible for this Niniane to trap Merlin. We don't know how she did it so we can't use that to trap anyone." 

Ron persisted, "But Harry, didn't you say that Lupin was trapped in part of the cavesealed in. And then you just walked in and walked out. Why couldn't we use the magic that is already in place to seal someone else in the same cave?"

Harry said, "I don't know, Ron. Do you really think that's possible? We'd need to know more about the caveAnd we'd need a plan." He stopped abruptly and looked from Hermione to Ron and back again. "No Make that I'd need a plan. I'm not dragging you two into another harebrained scheme." He shook his head at them. Hermione had that familiar know it all look and Ron's brow was already furrowed as though he was already working out the best strategy.

Harry's temper began to rise to the surface. "I'd rather try to kill Voldemort, face to face, than drag you two into danger againyou don't know what it's like, knowing your friends could be dead or dying because of something you did," he shouted. "I won't let either of you do this." It occurred to him that none of them could see Thestrals.

Feeling the now familiar wave of power radiate from their friend as his anger rose, Ron and Hermione gave him identical sympathetic looks. It just made him madder so he yelled, "I'm not changing my mind!" 

Ron protested loudly, "Who put you in charge! I make my own choicesand so does Hermione. You don't have to change things all by yourself."

In a quieter voice, Hermione said, "You're not the only one who wants to rid the world of Voldemort. None of us will be safe until he is gone. It's not up to you to save us."

Although the air around Harry still crackled with the energy he couldn't control, silence descended. Each of them was preoccupied by their own thoughts as Ginny quietly joined them. "What's all the shouting about?" 

Although her presence calmed him down, Harry couldn't quite meet her eyes. He didn't want to lie to her, but he didn't want her to hear about Ron's idea either. 

Hermione stood up and pointed to the book on the table. "We found what appears to be a reference to Myrddin's Den in this book. It describes how Merlin died -- or at least it gives an account of his last known days." 

Ginny leaned over the book and read for a moment. The three friends looked at one another over her bent figure, each trying to communicate something different with their expression. Harry shook his head no. He didn't want Ginny brought into this. Clearly, his two best friends had a different opinion. 

Hermione spoke first, "So we might think of a plan to trap Voldemort -- confine him somewhere."

Ginny stood up straight and folded her arms in front of her. She raised one eyebrow as the controversy occurred to her. "And Harry, you think that you should be able to trap him all by yourself - without putting anyone else in harm's way."

Harry was relieved. Thinking that she agreed with him, he smiled and said, "Thanks for understanding, Ginny! You'll see. It'll be for the best. If the plan succeeds, then the threat of the Death Eaters will be a thing of the past. If the plan fails, then only one person is" His voice trailed off as he watched all three of his friends faces turn into angry scowls. Ginny's face was as red as Ron's.

"Where did you get the idea that I'd go along with this! It's a terrible plan. You're not going off alone for some sort of showdown with Death Eaters. You're not!" Ginny yelled. 

Ron joined in. "It's up to us whether or not we want to fight. What have we all been training for? This isn't just about you."

Harry answered in a deep, serious voice. "But it is about me, Ron. You just don't know. You didn't hear the prophecy." 

Keeping her voice calm, Hermione said, "I thought it was broken during the fight in the Department of Mysteriesand no one heard a word."

Ginny shook her head and looked surprised. "You never told them?"

Ron was becoming impatient. "Told us what? Is there something we should know?"

Harry sat down on the sofa, feeling defeated. He covered his face with his hands for a moment, then looked up at his friends. They all were looking at him expectantly. "Yes, there is something I should have told you last June. I just didn't know how." 

Ginny went and sat beside him and said, "Just tell them now, Harry. It'll be all right."

He sighed heavily before he spoke. "I heard the prophecy -- not when the globe broke during the fight in the Death Chamber, but later in Dumbledore's office." 

Ron and Hemione began to speak at the same time. Harry raised his hand to stop their questions. "I'll explain everything. You were both in the infirmary unconscrecuperating. I didn't want to bother you, then I don't know why I didn't tell you this last summer. I guess I just didn't want to think about all this stuff while we were so relaxed andand happy." 

He looked over at Ginny briefly before continuing. Somehow her hand had crept into his, comforting him and giving him the support he needed. "When Dumbledore and I returned to his office that night, I was a messHe wouldn't let me leave and I trashed his officeI didn't want to think abouteverything that had happened and I just wanted. I don't know. I guess I wanted out of my life. It was awful. Anyway, Dumbledore made me stay. Told me I could break anything that I felt like breaking and began to explain things from his point of view."

Ron and Hermione sat down at the study table. They were both giving Harry their full attention. 

"He told me that there was something that he hadn't wanted me to know. Somehow he thought if he kept the truth from me, I would have a happy childhood or something like that. He told me why Voldemort killed my parents. They were in his way. I was his target even thenbecause of the prophecy. The one that Voldemort was trying to retrieve from the Department of Mysteries."

Harry looked at each of his friends in turn. "The original prophecy was told to Dumbledore by Trelawney of all people. Apparently someone in Voldemort's group heard part of the prophecy, but not the whole thing. He used his pensieve to show me. Trelawney went all weird and said, _The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approachesborn to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month diesand the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have a power the Dark Lord knows notand either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives."_

The only sound was the fire crackling. Ron and Hermione seemed stunned. Harry broke the quiet. "So you see this is about me. And it won't help to put everyone that I care about at risk. Somehow, someday, I will need to face him alone. It's the only way."

"No, Harry," Ginny said quietly. "That's not quite right."

Hermione stood up and straightened her robes. "Ginny's right. You don't have to do this alone. The prophecy may say you have the power and that one of you must die at the hand of the other, but it doesn't say you have to do it alone." She paused for a moment before adding thoughtfully, "How do you even know that the prophecy meant you? Trelawny didn't use your name. There must have been other wizards who were born in late July."

Harry answered, "Dumbledore's sure. Voldemort marked me with the scar. Otherwise, the prophecy could have meant Neville. He was born in July and his parents had faced Voldemort three times."

"Couldn't Neville have a mark that no one knows about?" Hermione asked. 

"Possibly some kind of memory charm?" Ron said thoughtfully. Ginny stifled a giggle.

Hermione ignored Ron and walked over to Harry. Lifting his chin to look into her face, she said, "Prophecy's are tricky, Harry. No one can really say exactly how this one will be fulfilled. Don't shut us out. What happens to you affects everyone in this room. We all care about you." She gave him a hug.

Harry hugged her back and said, "Thanks, Hermione. Sorry I shouted earlier." All of his anger was gone. He'd shared his biggest worry with his best friends. It was a relief.

Ron draped his arm around Hermione and looked at Harry. "So you told Ginny last summer, but not us?" Harry nodded and Ron's face broke into a big grin. 

Rolling her eyes, Hermione changed the subject. "It's late. Maybe we should get some sleep. We're not going to figure anything out tonight. Besides, Ron needs his beauty sleep." While Ron's comeback to her comment wasn't particularly witty, it became obvious that Hermione and he wanted to be alone. 

Relieved his friends were too distracted to be offended that he'd confided in Ginny instead of them. Harry said goodnight quickly. As he climbed the stairs to the dorm, he stopped to watch Ginny until she was out of sight. 

The following morning began as most did. Harry finished his run and showered before the other boys in his dormitory had roused themselves. Today he was much later than usual because he'd stopped to talk to Hagrid out on the grounds. Rummaging through his trunk in search of clean trousers, he could hear Dean Thomas still snoring. Otherwise, Ron and he were alone.

"Should you still be out running by yourself every morning, Harry?" Ron asked. His question wasn't so out of the blue. He'd been asking it ever since the kidnapping attempts. 

Raising his eyebrows, Harry answered with a question. "Are you offering to keep me company, Ron?" He knew the answer was no even before Ron shook his head. "Then stop worrying. I change my route slightly every day. Besides, I like the time to clear my head. I promise not to read any strange owl messages."

He went back to searching his trunk. Instead of trousers, he pulled out his wooden box and sat down on his bed looking at it. "Try opening this, Ron," he said. 

"What for? You know it only opens for you." Ron was busy getting dressed. 

"Yes, but why? What sort of spell makes this box recognize me?" He set the box back in his trunk. Glancing at Dean's sleeping form, he asked Ron the same question that Professor Snape had asked him. "What do you know about Blood Charms, Ron?" 

"Not much, mate. I've heard Bill mention them I think. Why?"

Harry told him about Snape's mysterious behavior at last week's detention. "How do Blood Charms work? I meant to ask someone about it, butbut it's a pretty good question. Don't you think?" 

"That's right, Harry. You should ask someone. You don't have to do everything yourself. You aren't alone. You have me and Hermione and Ginny." Ron paused to see if Harry reacted to his mention of Ginny. 

Without saying anything, Harry turned his back on Ron and finished getting dressed. He wasn't sure where this conversation was going.

"How long have you and Ginny been speaking into those charmed two-way mirrors, Harry?" Ron asked pleasantly. 

Harry froze. He'd been wondering when Ron would get around to asking about those. Without turning around he said, "It's not what you think, Ron. We just need to be able to talk" Even that sounded bad. Harry started feeling very exposed. He noticed that Dean's snoring had ceased.

Ron smiled knowingly. "I know how you feel about my sister, Harry."

Heart pounding, Harry swallowed hard. He turned toward his friend and held perfectly still.

Seeing his shocked face, Ron tried to reassure him. "Stop worrying. I know you'd never hurt her."

"Meaning what, Weasley? Are you saying that I hurt your sister?" Dean Thomas was awake after all. 

While Dean and Ron sorted that out, Harry hurried away from the dormitory. He didn't know how to interpret Ron's words. What did he think he understood? 

Ron caught up with him on the stairs. "Wait up, mate."

Harry thought, If I can't talk to Ron who can I talk to?' He made himself try. "What happened back there, Ron?"

"I guess Dean took what I said the wrong way. But you understand me. Don't you, Harry? I meanremember last summer when we talked about taking charge of our lives? You said we should go after what we want in life." Harry remembered telling Ron to go after Hermione. 

"I don't know what to say, Ron," said Harry. He felt awkward talking about this. After all, this was Ginny. He didn't want to say the wrong thing.

"Don't know what to say or don't know what you want?" Ron asked. The two had stopped on a landing as they spoke. Neville caught up to them before Harry could answer.

"C'mon you two. Don't want to miss breakfast," Neville said, ignoring the fact that the two friends were staring at each other. 

Ron broke away and started down the stairs with Neville. "How're things going with Luna?"

"I keep trying, but" Neville seemed a little dejected. "Seamus told me to play it cool and ignore her. He says that's how he got Lavender to notice himIt doesn't seem to be working though."

Ron was looking at Harry as he answered. "Of course it isn't working, Neville. She doesn't know how you feel. You should compliment her. Notice her hair or her clothes." Ron spent the rest of their walk giving Neville advice on how to let a girl know that you like her. 

As they reached the breakfast crowd, Harry said, "I better go. Don't want to be late for Moody." The Gryffindor table looked full. Ginny and Hermione seemed surrounded. Anyway, he was eager to get away from Ron.

Hermione waved and smiled. "You still have time for some food."

Harry was ready to leave, but then Ginny looked up and smiled. She moved over to make some room. He slipped into the seat next to her and quietly helped himself to breakfast, thinking about Ron's advice to Neville. 

Hermione held up the Daily Prophet and said, "So far, so good, Harry. You're not mentioned in here at all. News of Pettigrew's trial next week has been declared a secret. Fudge cites security reasons because of the ongoing fight against He Who Must Not Be Named."

Harry nodded and said, "That's great, Hermione. Thanks for checking." Hermione smiled at him and turned to Ron. They began an animated discussion about whether or not a secret trial could be fair — even to Death Eaters. 

Ginny was staring into her teacup. While she was glad of Harry's presence, she wasn't much for conversation in the morning. Her usual Harry intuition missed the nervous way he kept glancing over at her. 

Until Harry cleared his throat and said, "Your freckles arenice, GinI mean, they look like they usually donice." Harry took a large gulp of too-hot tea and choked. 

A tiny furrow showed between Ginny's eyebrows as she took in Harry's words. Was Harry insulting her freckles? She looked up to see him choking on his tea. Biting her lip to keep from smiling, she couldn't think of anything to say. 

Anyway, she'd lost her chance. Harry stood up abruptly and grabbed his book bag. "Better get to class," he said. With a quick nod to Ron and Hermione, he left the Great Hall. 

"What was that about?" Ginny asked, watching Harry racing from the room. His robes were flapping behind him and he was running a hand through his messy black hair.

Ron burst out laughing, but he didn't answer. Neville, who had overheard Harry's comment, leaned in and said, "Maybe you should test your theories first, Ron." 

Almost every square inch of Dumbledore's office held the sleeping portrait of a former Hogwarts' headmaster, some dating back hundreds of years. Harry looked at them closely. All around him was the sound of snoring, but he suspected they were only pretending to sleep. 

"If you are a painting, why do you need to sleep?" he asked no one in particular. 

"Hmm No one has ever asked that before," said the portrait of Armando Dippet, Dumbledore's predecessor.

"Yes, they have, but only a few through the centuries," said a portrait of a man in much older dress, dating back hundreds of years. 

Glad he had opened up a conversation with them, Harry said, "Thanks, I'll take that as a compliment. You probably have some great stories about Hogwarts. Any that you can share?" 

No telling how long he would have to wait for Professor Dumbledore. Harry was in the busy Headmaster's office twice a week for tutoring, studying Wandless Magic, among other things. Getting to know the Headmaster portraits would help pass the time. Besides, Harry wanted a little company. 

"Wouldn't you like to know?" asked a female Headmistress who must have been around during the 1930's judging from her clothes. Harry noticed the little brass plate on the frame said, Agatha Feathering. 

"How about a trade, young man? You tell us the best current gossip and we'll tell you a good story from Hogwarts' past." Phineas Nigellus was awake and ready to bargain Slytherin style.

"All right. But I should tell you, I don't pay that much attention to gossip," said Harry. "What kind of stories are you interested in?" 

"Tell us who's sneaking around the castle at night besides you?" said Headmaster Feathering. Harry often made a late night trip down to the kitchens, more to talk to Dobby than anything else. 

"I'm not meeting anyone if that's what you're wondering. Besides, I'm an assistant, remember? I'm allowed to wander the castle at night without calling it sneaking. Although I'll admit I'm still pretty careful about avoiding Mr. Filch and his cat. Tell you what, I'll keep my eyes open and let you know if I run into anyone late at night." He was pleased they had found a topic of common interest. Some of the portraits were nodding approvingly.

"I do know who transfigured the house points board to read, Snakes in Training instead of Slytherin House — Ginny Weasley." Harry laughed softly. 

Professor Dippet answered, "We already know that. I watch her do something like that every week. She's quite the early riser." 

Harry smiled. "Well, still I told you one. Now it's your turn." 

Before anyone could answer, Professor Dumbledore arrived. The portraits went back to feigning sleep. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Harry. I trust you were sufficiently entertained." The headmaster's eyes were twinkling as though he knew Harry and the portraits had been having an interesting conversation before he arrived. 

"Were you able to finish reading about transfiguring objects to use as shields?" Their recent study had focused on creating protective shields out of everyday objects. Harry had several books to read on the subject. 

"I've finished all of the reading, Professor. And I've practiced enough to feel confident." Harry's tutorial with Dumbledore was different from any class he'd ever taken. Usually the Headmaster just assigned reading and discussed things with Harry. Then Harry would practice on his own.

"We'll move on to conjuring a shield. Transfiguring is easier. You are changing one thing into another. To conjure, you must create something out of nothing. It requires a different set of skills and a much higher level of magical energy." Dumbledore considered his student for a moment. 

Harry answered earnestly, "So far, I've mainly Conjured food, sir. I put my cooking magic to good use over the summer." Harry smiled. 

He'd discovered his ability for Wandless Magic when his extreme desire for a good breakfast had produced results back at the Dursley's. "I'm curious, sir. I was wondering why the Ministry overlooked my Wandless Magic last summer, Professor? I'm glad they did, but what's the reason?" He'd been wondering about that. 

"The Ministry cannot always detect magic performed without a wand. The reading may just seem to be accidental magical energy or a build up of excess energy that has been discharged, unless of course the energy blows up an Aunt or destroys a dessert. Each wand has a signature which is registered with the Ministry of Magic. For most wizards, focusing their magical energy requires the use of a wand or staff. The use of a token from a magical creature helps magnify their energy and channel it into the spell." 

Dumbledore looked at his student through his little glasses. Sometimes it astounded him. Harry truly had no idea how strong a wizard he was. "The fact that you have been able to channel and focus your magical energy without your wand proves that you are a very powerful wizard, Harry." 

"How many wizards use Wandless Magic?" Growing up with Muggles, Harry was clueless about many aspects of the wizarding world. 

"I've known only five wizards who were capable of it." Dumbledore was looking at Harry as though he would have liked to spare the younger man this truth. The truth was that Harry was one of the most powerful wizards alive. Prophecy had ordained that Harry was the one capable of vanquishing Voldemort. It was his place in the world. 

Harry considered what the Headmaster had said. If he was one of the few people capable of this level of magic, then he needed to learn how to use it well. Whether he was ready for it or wanted it, this was a fact of his life. He took a deep breath and said, "Voldemort, you, Grindelwald and who?"

Dumbledore laughed quietly, "Harry Potter and Nicholas Flamel."

"Ah, your old partner. The inventor of the Sorcerer's Stone." Harry had always wished he could meet Nicholas Flamel. He smiled remembering the first year when Hermione, Ron and he had searched everywhere to find out who Nicholas Flamel was. Then his face grew solemn, as another thought occurred to him, "So about half the wizards in the last century who were capable of Wandless Magic became dark wizards?"

"You could look at it that way." Dumbledore was proud that Harry seemed to be working out for himself what having such abilities might mean.

"With great power comes great responsibility. Who said that, Professor?" Harry wasn't sure where he'd heard that.

"Besides yourself? I'm not familiar with the quote, but it does seem to apply." His eyes searched the portraits for help. Most were shrugging their shoulders and shaking their heads. 

The portrait of an eighteenth century gentleman said mysteriously, "Thou must be either anvil or hammerthat was Goethe."

"Wellthank you," answered Harry politely, not sure what to make of that statement. 

Dumbledore said nothing, but he looked pleased. Harry was struck with how much the Headmaster had changed toward him, meeting with him twice a week, patiently helping him understand things. Was he worried that Harry would become a Dark Wizard? Whatever his reason, it was enough that Dumbledore was helping.

Harry had made up his mind last summer. He would accept that help, but would still find his own path, whatever Dumbledore thought. Once Voldemort was out of the way, Harry would find his own place in the world, not one determined by some old prophecy. 

Setting aside these thoughts, Harry asked, "What are Blood Charms, Professor Dumbledore?"

The Headmaster answered with his usual poise. "They are dark magic, Harry. Although some magic that we think of now as dark is simply ancient magic that has been replaced with the invention of simpler, easier charms. We have no modern equivalent for Blood Charms. They have gone the way of human sacrifice, too gruesome to be popular. The blood magic that protects you at Privet Drive is different. It involves kinship and love. Blood Charms generally involve actual blood."

"So whatever charms my mother cast to protect me were not considered Blood Charms."

Dumbledore nodded. The many gadgets that spun on his desk seemed to grow louder. The air seemed to charge with something.

It was on the tip of Harry's tongue to ask, Does Voldemort want my blood for some kind of Blood Charm?' but something held him back. Surely the Headmaster knew anything Snape knew. So why did Snape think it was important to tell him in secret? 

So instead of asking Dumbledore to explain, he said, "I reckon the box I inherited this summer has some kind of Blood Charm. It's really old and I'm the only one who can open it."

It seemed to Harry that the Headmaster let out an almost imperceptible sigh of relief before nodding and moving on to the day's lesson. 

Saturday finally arrived. Despite cloudy skies, all of Hogwarts gathered on the Quidditch pitch, flags flying. The grass was green. The stands were full. "Welcome to the first Quidditch match of the Year!" boomed the voice of Terry Boot. "Slytherin vs. Gryffindor!" The crowd cheered wildly. Chants of "Go, go Gryffindor!" competed with the Slytherin cheers. These two houses always put on a great show. 

A series of red and gold blurs flew past the stands as Harry and Ron led the team onto the pitch. While most of the team took up their positions, Harry landed and walked toward Madam Hooch and Captain Draco Malfoy. "Who'd you bribe to get your lifetime ban lifted, Potter?" 

Smiling coldly as he extended his hand, Harry answered, "Here's to a nice, clean game." 

Madam Hooch looked at him approvingly. "Let's have a good, clean game from both teams today. Captains, shake hands!" Draco grudgingly gripped Harry's hand. She blew her whistle and shouted, "Let the game begin!" as she released the Bludger and the Snitch and threw the Quaffle high in the air.

The roar of the crowd receded in Harry's mind as he flew steeply upwards knowing Malfoy was almost sure to follow. Since Draco spent most games following the opposing Seeker, Harry planned to fly in a series of dives and spins to keep him unsettled. 

The game was fast-paced and dirty. Five minutes into it, the heavens opened up and rain poured on them. Glad he'd switched to contact lenses, Harry's robes were soaked and his hair was plastered to his forehead. 

At first Ginny and Katie seemed unstoppable. Their flying formations faked out the Slytherin Keeper three times in quick succession. Then Slytherin stole the Quaffle by sandwiching Katie between two of their Chasers while their Beaters hit the Bludger directly at Ginny forcing her to make a sudden dive toward safety. Happily, Katie stayed on her broom. 

The score became fairly even. Ron blocked several Slytherin attempts to score, but their Beaters were flying rings around Kirke and Sloper.

Malfoy followed Harry around shouting something with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. With the wind and rain, Harry couldn't hear what Malfoy was saying. Thinking that may be for the best, he concentrated on keeping his eyes open for the small gold ball while putting Malfoy through his flying paces. 

"Ffft" Madam Hooch's whistle blew. "Penalty to Gryffindor." Someone had blatantly elbowed Gryffindor's third Chaser, Elizabeth Howe. Katie Bell took the penalty shot since Elizabeth was still rubbing her shoulder in pain. 

"Do we need a time out?" Harry called through the storm.

"I'll be fine," answered Elizabeth. "Let's get them." The game resumed. Ginny and Katie were back to flying in formation carefully passing the Quaffle back and forth. The Slytherin Chasers were flying above them, trying to steal the Quaffle. As they neared the hoops, Katie dropped the ball down to Elizabeth who scored. The Slytherins had been so focused on Ginny and Katie that they'd forgotten to mark the injured girl. Gryffindor was ahead. 

If only Harry could find the Snitch, but the little golden ball was still in hiding. He continued to fly diversionary patterns hoping to keep Draco dizzy.

The game seemed to be going their way. That's when it happened. With a loud thud, Ron was body checked by a Beater into the path of an oncoming Bludger which struck his head. As he fell, a collective gasp rose from the crowd. He hit the ground with a soft, squishy sound. Hoping that the rain soaked pitch had provided a soft landing for his friend, Harry raced over to him. Madam Hooch was already at his side.

"Shall we call the game?" asked Sloper, seeing that Ron appeared to be unconscious. His hulking frame loomed over Ron.

Harry answered, "No, you'll be taking over as Keeper. We'll play on and win. That's what Ron would want." Harry was determined that the Slytherins wouldn't benefit from their dirty play. "Is Ron going to be all right?" 

Madam Hooch answered, "He's starting to come around already." Ron's eyes had opened as she floated him onto a stretcher. "Mr. Weasley, can you hear me?" she asked in her gravelly voice.

Ron looked a little confused. Looking at Madam Hooch, he said, "Mum? What are you doing here? I'll finish getting rid of the garden gnomes later, Mum, when the rain stops." 

Harry and Ginny looked at each other, torn between mirth and concern. Mirth won. He would be all right. Smiling, Harry said, "We'll take care of those gnomes, Ron. You get some rest."

"Thanks, Harry. You're a good friend. And mate, listen to me, I know what I'm talking about -- you should just go ahead and kiss her." Ron said before closing his eyes again. That brought looks of concern to their faces. Harry looked anywhere but at Ginny. Katie tapped her fellow Chaser on the shoulder indicating they should take to the air again. 

Harry watched Ron floating toward the infirmary with Madam Pomfrey. Hermione caught up with them as they reached the edge of the pitch. 

Harry didn't have time to think about Ron's words as the game restarted. Sloper filled in as Keeper and the reserve Beater, Simon Dalrimple, came into the game. The next hour went badly for Gryffindor. The rain poured down as they tried to keep pace with Slytherin. 

Sloper was worse than Ron had been when he started last year. He only blocked one shot, letting the Slytherins score repeatedly. Gryffindor was behind by 150. If Harry caught the Snitch now, they would only tie. He wanted to win.

Finally it stopped raining. The sun shining helped Harry see it — a flash of gold by the Slytherin goalposts, near the ground. He took off in a steep dive. 

Malfoy shouted, "Not another Wronski Feint. Grow up, Potter. Get some new moves." He shut up when Harry leveled out near the Snitch. Groaning, he flew after him.

The Snitch changed directions taking Harry back up into a steep climb. Malfoy wasn't able to change directions fast enough and almost crashed into the ground. By the time he'd righted himself, Harry was far away, still in close pursuit of the Snitch. 

Harry slowed down and pretended he was simply flying in another search pattern, all the while keeping his eye on the Snitch. Unfortunately, the golden ball sped up suddenly leading Harry directly into the path of the Slytherin Chasers as they approached Sloper attempting to score yet again. 

Seeing Harry charging toward them like a bullet, the two Chasers scattered. Sloper called his thanks, but Harry couldn't hear him as he changed direction again and sped toward the other end of the pitch. He caught up to the Snitch, but he didn't take hold of it still trying to give the Chasers a chance. Ginny and Katie were flying in formation again.

Malfoy caught up, flying just a few feet behind. Any closer, Harry would either have to knock him off his broom or catch the Snitch and settle for a tie. If only someone would score one more goal. He was growing tired of keeping Malfoy off his back. 

Then the crowd went crazy. They were all on their feet screaming. "Gryffindor scores! Now they just need to catch the" Cries of elation turned to cries of horror. Terry Boot caught up with his commentary. "Just as Ginny Weasley scored, looks like a Bludger caught the back of her broomstick sending her into a steep spin dive. C'mon, Ginny, pull out of it," he yelled. 

After hearing Terry's announcement, Harry caught the Snitch easily, but he didn't celebrate. Instead he sped toward Ginny, watching as she spun toward the ground. Miraculously, she seemed to slow down considerably before landing with a small splash in a large puddle of mud. 

No one heard Madam Hooch's whistle. Terry Boot's magically enhanced voice shouted, "Gryffindor wins! Harry Potter caught the Snitch! Gryffindor wins 240 to 230. Weasley seems to be all right now. She's waving at the crowd." The rest of the team headed for Ginny. Students began to flood the pitch swarming around the team.

Ginny was flat on her back in a large puddle of mud laughing when Harry landed next to her, worried that she may have been injured since she hadn't stood up. She was soaking wet and her robes were muddy.

"Did you see that? I sent that shot off just before the Bludger knocked my broom." Harry kneeled down to see if she was all right. Her eyes were lit with laughter and adrenaline. Before he had a chance to speak, she impulsively grabbed the front of his Quidditch robes and said, "That was awesome." Then just as suddenly as she'd grabbed him, she let him go so she could stand up.

Acutely aware of how close they'd been, Harry jumped away like she was on fire. Embarrassed, he turned without looking and ran smack into Madam Hooch. Muttering an apology to Madam Hooch, Harry handed her the Snitch.

"WhoaHarry. What's your hurry," said Katie Bell from behind him. She clapped her hand onto Harry's shoulder and said, "Nice catch."

Laughing at Harry's dumbstruck look, Katie said, "Celebration in the tower? Maybe we can sneak someone into Hogsmeade for some butterbeer." 

Harry stole a glance at Ginny. She was being congratulated by some fifth years. Colin Creevey kept shouting something to her and then taking her photograph. 

Since she wasn't paying any attention to him, Harry relaxed a little and watched. She was beautiful, the center of attention again. Her hair was loose now and caught the sunlight as it fell around her shoulders. She sparkled despite her mud soaked robes. 

Something snapped inside him. Forget the crowd. Forget her other admirers standing right there. He had to tell her how he felt. The crowd parted as he strode toward her. 

Ginny felt a rush of happiness watching Harry's face as he approached. Green eyes met brown. Despite being surrounded by a chaotic crowd of celebrating housemates, for a moment they were the only two people in the world. 

Just before he reached her, a loud thud and the feel of someone barreling into his back reminded Harry that they were not alone. They were surrounded by rowdy teenagers. Whoever ploughed into Harry was laughing and wrestling with someone else, oblivious to the fact they had knocked him off balance. 

For a brief moment, Ginny kept Harry from falling, but he was too heavy for her. Instead of keeping him on his feet, he pulled her down into the mud with him. 

Someone yelled, "Mud fight!" Then Kirke and Sloper, the two whose wrestling had knocked Harry over, joined Ginny and Harry in the mud. Dalrimple and the other reserves jumped in voluntarily, splashing as much mud on the others as they could. Before anyone could move, Harold Dingle dragged Katie and Elizabeth into the mud so the whole team would be soaked. Harold and several other seventh years splashed in with them while Colin busily snapped pictures.

Ginny was laughing at Harry's mud splattered face. "Going for that freckled look yourself, Harry?"

"Ohwell. I thought I'd give it a try." Harry answered, wishing she'd forget he ever said anything about her freckles.

Fwap. Ginny threw some more mud onto Harry's uniform. "You missed a spot there. Let me help you" She said and smeared another handful across his chest. 

Harry couldn't help but grin. "Oh, you shouldn't have done that, WeasleyI can see you need a lesson." With that he threw his own mudball, but Sloper slipped and knocked Harry's arm so it missed her completely.

"Give it up, Potter. You can't get me. Your aim is just that badwhile you, on the other hand, are a mud magnet" All around them, the mud was flying.

The magically enhanced voice of Professor McGonagall called a halt to the mud fight. Before going off to the showers, the group gave in to Colin's pleading and posed for one more photograph. 

While Colin steadied the camera, Ginny was laughing and holding the front of Harry's robes to steady herself in the slippery mud. Harry felt a rush of happiness flow through every part of him. This felt right. 

As though it was the most natural thing to do, Harry leaned down and brushed his lips over hers softly, like a whisper. Their eyes met bright with emotion. Neither of them noticed anything but each other. 

Then he took her hand and asked, "Shall we?" tilting his head toward the dressing rooms. "We should clean up and go find out about Ron." They walked off together, holding hands and smiling. Something had changed. The world was the same, but he'd begun to find his place in it. 

Notes to reviewers: 

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athenakitty: Your questions are right on the money as usual. Thanks for reviewing!

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Nightwing 509: I'm glad you've enjoyed the story so far. Harry is starting to figure things out. Thanks for your review!

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Lourdes1: Sorry for the delay. I thought I hid that potion clue so well. I guess nothing gets past you! Thanks for reviewing!

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Hunta: Thanks for your review! The Death Eaters have just begun

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Lord of Darkness13: Thanks for your comments. You're very kind. Harry will deal with the competition in the next chapter. Thanks for reviewing!

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Jaquelyne: Thanks for your review! Ron's matchmaking work isn't done. His most desperate plan is coming soon. 

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Gryphonmistress: Good suggestion. Harry should join in on the pranks -- if only to lighten up a little! They are one step closer to figuring things out. Thanks for reviewing!

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nat: Thanks for reviewing! Hope you enjoy the story once the action starts. 

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Happy Snakes Rule: I had a doll named Toodles! Small world, isn't it? Thanks for reviewing!

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cintishortstop: Thanks! I appreciate it. 

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dhmc: Thanks for following my story. Sorry about the delay in updating. I'll try to improve. Thanks for leaving a note!

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lluvatar: Great pen name! Sorry about the delay. It couldn't be avoided. I will try to improve. Thanks for writing.


	17. It's Raining Men

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Fluff Alert! Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read and review! Notes are at the end of the story.

Chapter Seventeen

It's Raining Men

A bank of fog hung over the lake. The air was still as the early morning light gradually turned the blue mist into the pink glow of sunrise. The only sounds Harry could hear were his own ragged breathing and the pounding of his feet hitting the ground as he ran along the now familiar path. Birds skittered through the brush in front of him.

Harry stopped and stretched, turning back to watch the sun bathe the castle with warmth. Hogwarts looked like a dream, rising on a rocky outcropping above the foggy lake. From this perspective, the place appeared to be untouchable, safe from the world and all its conflicts.

Resuming his run back toward the castle, he thought, Appearances can be deceiving.' He knew that the people within the dreamy castle walls struggled with the same conflict between good and evil as the rest of the wizarding world. Someday soon they would all have to choose sides.

Ginny waited in the Great Hall for breakfast to start. For weeks, she'd been arriving early in hopes of having some time with Harry, who began most days at dawn with a run along the lakeshore. Early to bed and early to rise was not really her style.

As the food began to appear, a tall figure came up behind her. "You're up early, Ginny," said Terry Boot. He couldn't help but notice the pretty redhead's presence at breakfast. His voice made her jump. "Don't get up. Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. II've seen you in here most mornings. I've been meaning to say something. Get to know you better. Do you mind if I sit down?"

He sat next to her without waiting for an answer and continued speaking. "Most girls think they need their beauty sleep, but you, well, you're one of the prettiest girls here, yet you get up early for a healthy breakfast." He paused to see her reaction to his compliment.

Not really quite awake, Ginny hadn't taken in all that he had to say. She caught his "one of the prettiest girls" comment, but she didn't really get why he was telling her this. Wishing they could start this conversation over so she could figure out what he meant, she said, "Good morning, Terry."

He took this as encouragement and leaned over to speak to her more intimately, but he was interrupted by the arrival of Dean Thomas. "Terry," said Dean, rather curtly. He was still determined to convince Ginny that he would make a good boyfriend if she would just give him another chance, although weeks of persistent attention hadn't changed anything.

Dean had thought his rival was Harry Potter. Ginny and Harry seemed to have become close friends over the summer. Ever since the Quidditch match a couple of weeks ago, she seemed to spend a lot of time with Harry in the common room. Yet here she was with Terry Boot cozying up to her at breakfast.

They looked up at him. "Morning, Dean," said Ginny, wishing they would all leave her alone until she'd had some more tea.

Dean greeted her pleasantly and sat down to pour himself some coffee. He eyed Terry suspiciously.

Terry just glared back at Dean. He'd heard that Ginny and Dean had broken up. Maybe he was wrong. He decided to be cool, show Ginny what a gentleman he was. Good breeding will show. Still staring Dean down, he asked, "Can I get you some toast, Ginny?"

Already holding a piece of toast in her hand, she said, "Thanks anyway, Terry. I'm all set."

A flash of light announced that Colin Creevey had arrived, camera in hand, his younger brother Dennis in tow. "Wow! Look at the Slytherin flag, everyone!" Their eyes followed to where he was pointing. Someone had changed the Slytherin crest on their house flag hanging near the house points board. Instead of an evil looking snake, the crest now showed a rather harmless looking flobberworm. Grins and laughter broke out among the breakfast gathering, including Seamus and Neville who had just arrived. Ginny didn't join in, but she did have a small smile on her face at the prank.

"Good grief. What's everyone doing up at the crack of dawn?" asked Neville as he sat down next to Dean. "Aren't you usually the last one out of the dorm, Dean? Something special happening today?"

Seamus sat down across from them and said, "What's that about a crack, Neville? Is it the annual greet the dawn in the buff lakeshore swim? Did I miss something?" He smiled at everyone. No one knew what he was talking about. What annual swim in the buff?

Ginny didn't want to know. She poured herself another cup of tea and looked toward the entrance, wondering what happened to Harry this morning. She watched as Ron and Hermione entered the Great Hall.

Ever since his Quidditch injury, Hermione had insisted that Ron get to bed early. Although he'd recovered quickly, she wanted to take good care of him. Seeing the crowd around Ginny, they exchanged glances, as if to ask each other what's going on. They both shrugged and sat down. Ron piled breakfast foods on his plate. Hermione poured two cups of tea, one for Ron and one for herself, then looked over at Ginny who was staring into her teacup like it was a crystal ball. "Seeing the future in there, Ginny?" she asked.

Ginny smiled sleepily at her friend. "More like avoiding the future, Hermione. I'm not quite ready to face the day. How bout you? When did you finally get to bed last night?"

She had left Hermione in the common room last night with about six books open around her. She was busy trying to connect some of the references in Harry's little book, looking up the archaic place names and historical allusions.

"Yeah, thanks for all that help, Ginny. You're so strict about getting to bed at eleven." Hermione was the sort that kept asking about something until even the little details made some sense. She knew that Ginny had some little secret. Trying to trick it out of her while she was too sleepy to think seemed like a good plan.

Harry answered instead, "As Captain, I'm glad to hear that Ginny takes her training seriously." Moody's stealth training was working. No one had known he was there until he spoke. He arrived with his black hair still damp and stuck to his neck from a quick shower after his run. He looked healthy and fresh.

Ginny smiled sweetly at his praise. Harry wished he could sit next to her, but she was surrounded so he joined Ron and Hermione a couple of seats away. He concentrated on his food. Always hungry after his morning run, he especially liked the Hogwarts breakfast. He made an effort to catch up with Ron, avoiding even looking at Ron's beautiful sister.

"Death Eaters Get Life Sentence!" announced Hermione, reading the headline off the front page of the Daily Prophet. Under the headline was a photo of the balding Peter Pettigrew and the two young men that had been involved in the attempt to kidnap Harry. Harry wondered which one of the younger men was his fencing instructor's brother.

Ginny stopped as she was leaving and said quietly, "See you in class, Harry." She had Double Defense class with the Hufflepuffs that morning. Harry was looking forward to it. Feeling like he had let her down somehow, he looked at Ron who gave him a little shrug as if to say, "If you don't know, I can't explain it."

Others at the table watched her go, then exchanged glances before rising to follow. Dean caught up with her first, then Terry. She looked surprised, looking at one boy, then the other. Dean took her bag for her. Terry offered her something. The three of them left the hall together as Harry watched with a scowl.

Ron cleared his throat and said, "Hermione, didn't you tell me that Ginny broke up with Dean Thomas?"

"Yes, Ron. I did. She broke it off the minute we got back to Hogwarts — almost two months ago," she answered, looking through her lashes at Harry.

"Seems like he's still around," said Harry dryly. Talking about Ginny's love life was making him nervous. "Don't we have something more important to think about? Sheshe has more important things on her mind. And so do we. Have you found anything out lately, Hermione? I think I've made some progress with the sword." Harry and his fencing instructor had been working on using the magical sword without exploding the doors of the practice room. He could control it fairly well now.

Dropping their plan to provoke Harry into just admitting his feelings for Ginny, Ron and Hermione agreed to meet that night in the common room to discuss things. They went their separate ways.

Harry made his way to the Defense classroom. As he turned into the corridor he saw Dean Thomas step back from Ginny. He'd been close enough to kiss her. Overwhelmed with jealousy, Harry felt his cheeks burn. He told himself there couldn't possibly be anything to be jealous about, but as Dean passed him, it was all he could do not to hex him.

The fifth years were studying the protection spell, _Protego! _Professor Moody asked Harry to move about the class and help students practice the correct wand motion. Ginny and some of the other Gryffindors had already studied this spell in the D.A. last year so he wouldn't have to go near her.

Ignoring her was working pretty well until he heard her call his name. "Harry!" she said, sounding sweet. His eyes locked onto her smiling brown ones. He swallowed hard; hoping no one could see how he felt.

"Miss Weasley," he said, trying to sound formal and professional and failing utterly.

She giggled and moved over to where he was standing. "Can you show me how to do this? Am I holding my wrist correctly?" What was she playing at? She knew this spell cold.

He was close enough to smell her hair. It was heavenly. "You're doing beautifully, Ginny," he said quietly. "You know this spell."

She liked having an effect on him. His ears were turning red. She smiled. "You could probably still show me a thing or two."

Just then Colin Creevey let out a shriek. "Help him!" he cried. Pointing at Ian Fitzpatrick who was dodging objects right and left, Colin and the others ducked under nearby desks. Bags and books, quills and inkbottles were flying toward the fifth year.

"_Finite Incantatem!_" shouted Harry in a loud clear voice. "What did you say?" he asked Ian with a grin. Papers were still floating down from the ceiling. Moody peered out from his office door to see that order had been restored although the classroom looked like a hurricane had struck.

"I, uhI think I said um" Ian's answered.

"He said _Projecto!_" said Colin Creevey climbing out from under the desk. Soon the whole class was laughing and sorting out the debris.

Harry put his hand on the shoulder of the younger Hufflepuff boy and said, "A slip of the tongue turning protect me' into throw things at me.' It could happen to anyone." He smiled, thinking about the defensive possibilities of this lovely little spell that Ian had discovered. It certainly held the element of surprise.

At the end of class, Ginny waited for Harry to come out of Moody's office. Smiling, Harry was pleased to have a moment alone with her. No one could think anything of his walking his best friend's sister to lunch. He offered to carry her bag.

They walked into the Great Hall together for the second meal of the day to find Ron surrounded by Dean Thomas, Terry Boot, Colin Creevey and Michael Corner. "Glad you could make it to lunch, Ginny, Harry," he said in clipped tones. Both Dean and Colin offered Ginny the seat next to them. She looked at Harry expectantly.

Startled by her look, Harry said, "Oh, here you are." He handed her book bag over to her and sat down across from Ron.

She watched him begin to load food on his plate. With a sigh, she took the closest seat that the other boys were offering her which happened to be next to Dean. He gave Colin a triumphant look. Smiling at them, she helped herself to lunch.

Ron couldn't help but notice that while Harry seemed very interested in his plate, his friend kept a close watch on Ginny, stealing glances out of the corner of his eye. When she threw her head back laughing at something Colin told her, Harry just looked like he wished he could join them, but when Dean rested his hand on Ginny's arm, Harry's mouth pressed into a thin line and his jaw clenched like he wanted to punch something.

To an outside observer it may have seemed that Harry was just eating lunch, lost in moody contemplation. But to Ron, it seemed that his friend was near the breaking point. Despite the busy lunchtime activity of the Great Hall, Ron was sure he felt that familiar crackle of energy that signaled Harry's anger was rising.

Leaning across the table so only Harry could hear, Ron said, "You could do something about this, you know."

Harry looked surprised and confused, "What are you on about?" Their heads were close together.

"All those guys trying to date my sister" Ron tilted his head toward Ginny and her admirers.

Harry paled, as it became clear that Ron was trying to enlist his help in keeping anyone from dating his little sister. Hoping he was hiding his own feelings about Ginny, Harry swallowed hard and answered carefully, "I think she's old enough to make her own decisions. Don't you want her to behappy?"

"None of them can make her happy. She can dobetter. Don't you think?" Ron asked, finishing his plea with a sigh. Harry would never take the hint.

Brown curls joined the conspiratorial huddle. "Don't you think what?" Hermione asked.

Breaking into a smile, Ron said, "Just the usual lunchtime dilemma. Now that you're here, you can help us come up with a way to get rid of all those guys hovering around my sister."

Hermione made a face and said, "Maybe a good strong love potion in Millicent Bulstrode's breakfast porridge? Or some simple sneezing powder mixed into the Shepherd's Pie? Or Harry could just freeze them in time for a minute and whisk Ginny out of the Great Hall." She loaded her plate quickly and began to eat.

"You're still a little scary sometimes. How'd you come up with all of that off the top of your head?" Ron was proud of his diabolical girlfriend.

Harry added, "I'm glad you're on our side, Hermione."

"Speaking of our side, Harry. Any word on the Order? Did you finally talk Lupin?" Hermione was referring to the Order of the Phoenix. Harry wasn't yet an official member, but Dumbledore and Lupin were pretty good about keeping him informed.

Harry nodded. "There's a meeting late tonight. Moody's going. Lupin said he's glad Pettigrew's going to Azkaban. Said it gives him closure."

Hermione patted her friend's arm, thinking Lupin wasn't the only one who needed closure. "How was Moody this morning?"

"He promised to teach me to Apparate!" Harry said, excited at the prospect. "He said that while Apparating without a license is illegal, studying Apparating isn't. I suppose I won't be able to practice much, but we'll see. The Ministry couldn't detect any of the magic I did last summer. As long as I don't use my wandI should be fine."

Ron seemed just as excited. "Wow! First making Portkeys and now Apparating. You're so lucky."

Hoping his friend wasn't jealous, Harry smiled and said, "I promise I'll teach you whatever Moody teaches me." The old Auror had taught Harry how to make a Portkey after the kidnapping in Hogsmeade few weeks before. Harry had immediately taught his friends.

Hermione frowned and shook her head. "Shhhyou two should be more careful where you talk about these things. These walls have ears."

Harry's fencing lesson in the afternoon was a grueling workout. Neither of them brought up the sentencing as they settled into sparring with broadswords. Thankfully, the weapons were charmed to keep them from cutting each other's arms off while they trained. Knowing that they couldn't really injure their opponent helped them be more aggressive as they fought. Anyway, conversation was usually reserved until after they trained.

The final sparring match ended with Rhys sending Harry flying onto his backside. His sword clattered across the practice room floor. Sore, but otherwise uninjured, Harry stood up said, "All right. I yield. You're unstoppable today."

Sweat pouring off his face, Harry undid the buttons on his white fencing tunic. He was still catching his breath. Carefully sheathing his practice sword in the scabbard he carried inside his practice bag, Harry wasn't sure he should bring up the Death Eater's trial. Obviously, Rhys must be upset about it. Instead he asked how Rhys' mother and sister were doing.

Not really surprised at Harry's compassion for his family, Rhys said, "Mum will never get over this. She's grieving as though Tecwyn died. My sister was really too young to have that much to do with him. First he was at Hogwarts, then he lived abroad. She's just worried about my motherlike I am."

"I'm sorry, Rhys." Harry said simply, wishing he knew what to say. "Wherenever mind." He didn't want to intrude.

"What is it? Go ahead and ask your question." Rhys thought Harry deserved to know all about his brother since he was one of the Death Eaters who tried to kidnap him with Peter Pettigrew. Maybe it would make things up to Harry in some small way.

Instead Harry asked, "Where in Wales do you live exactly?

Surprised, Rhys answered, "That wasn't the question I was expecting. We live just outside of Carmarthen. It's the largest wizarding enclave in Wales. It's part of the Muggle town, but the Muggles don't really notice us. It's not as private as Hogsmeade, but it's a place where a wizard can be a wizard without exciting the local constabulary."

"So you must know all about Merlinbeing from the area where he lived. What do the locals say about him? There must be local legends."

Puzzled, Rhys shrugged and said, "Well, the town is named after him, but I suppose the locals say the same thing about Merlin that everyone does — he was a great wizard."

Harry nodded, wondering if he should tell the young Welshman about his torch mystery. He was still trying to find out anything he could about the box his family had held onto for so many years. But something held him back. He'd only known Rhys for a couple of months. While he thought he could trust him, how could he be sure? So instead of bringing him into his confidence, he clapped his instructor on the shoulder, thanked him for the lesson and said goodbye.

As he hurried to shower before dinner, Harry called Ginny with his mirror. The pressures of the day melted away as he saw her freckles appear in the small glass. She was alone in the library, finishing her Charms homework after an early dinner. "I wanted to finish everything before the D.A. meeting tonight, Harry." She sounded tired.

"I won't be able to see you until then," Harry said. Then he explained that he'd found out that Rhys lived near Myrddin's Den, the cave where Harry had found the sword. They spoke for a few minutes. Then Harry went off to shower.

As he ate his dinner alone, he thought about how relieved he'd been to find her alone. Watching Ginny constantly pestered with male attention was getting old. Not that he blamed people for crowding around her. She was beautiful, fun and easy to talk to.

Later that evening, the crowd was back. By the time the D.A. meeting started, the pretty redhead was again surrounded with admirers. Colin, Dean, Terry and Michael were all trying to stand near her. Everyone was working on a new spell that Harry had found.

The spell camouflaged the caster with a flowering shrub. Of course, actually transfiguring yourself into foliage required a level of skill and magical power far beyond most Hogwarts students. This spell wasn't too difficult as Transfiguration spells go. It required the use of a handkerchief.

Harry was amused when he found the spell since so called Muggle magicians often used handkerchiefs in their illusions. Here was a real spell that used one. Basically, the spell transformed the square of cloth into a large flowering shrub for the witch or wizard to hide within. Of course, you could use the clothes you were wearing, but that could have unfortunate results if you hadn't practiced enough. It was definitely not a good idea in a room full of inexperienced teenagers.

As the session began, Terry Boot came over to Ginny and offered to be her partner, but she had already agreed to work with Colin. Then Harry demonstrated the spell they'd be learning. Since they didn't need a partner tonight, Terry said he'd stick close by so he could help her. Michael and Dean were watching nearby.

As students began to practice, Harry circulated around the room to help wherever needed. As he approached Ginny, it was all he could to do to be civil to the boys jockeying for a position close to her.

"Since you already know this one, Ginny, could you help the fourth years?" Harry asked, waving his hand toward a group of younger students. They were able to change their handkerchief into some kind of shrubbery, but were having difficulty enlarging it at the same time.

Before she could agree, Terry said, "I could use a little help, too. What was that wand movement again?"

"Let me show you," Harry said patiently, stepping over so that he and Terry Boot were facing the same direction. As he demonstrated the wand motion again, Ginny moved off in the direction of the younger students with a small smile on her face.

Harry made his way around the room. As he passed Neville, he overheard him talking to Luna who was hidden within a rather large purple azalea. "That's good, Lunayour shrub has really pretty flowers." Thinking, Ron strikes again,' Harry moved on.

Sophie Moon was working with Blaise Zabini. They were the only two sixth years from Slytherin. At least she'd finally talked someone into joining her. Harry greeted them both pleasantly. Blaise said, "Great spell, Harry. Sometimes a simple defense is best. Right?"

"Something like that. Although I have to say, this is sort of an outdoor spell." Harry had an image of someone trying to camouflage themselves in their kitchen as a flowering shrub.

He liked the quiet Slytherin. Blaise was the sort of person that often blended into the background — just a normal, average looking boy. Harry respected the fact that the two Slytherins came to the D.A. meeting despite the attitude of most of the older students in their house. At least they were willing to make a stand against the Death Eater children.

Cho had mastered the spell easily. Her huge flowering shrub had delicate white blossoms and a cloying heavy smell. Smiling, he said, "You're a quick study, Cho. Why don't you see if you can help some of the others?"

She looked at Harry appreciatively. This was the first time he had spoken to her in a week. "Thanks. I guess I had a good teacher. How are you, Harry?" It still seemed to Cho that Harry might be hiding a secret crush, but since he barely ever looked her way, she had no real evidence beyond wishful thinking.

Before Harry could answer, Hannah Abbott came up behind them. Flipping her blonde hair behind her shoulder, she said, "Could you show me how to flick my wand, Harry? You're so incredible." Without waiting for an answer, she stood in front of Harry expectantly practically leaning against his chest.

Her hair smelled like lilac making Harry wonder briefly if she would turn into the flowering purple plant. Politely ignoring the way she was brushing against him, Harry showed her the wand movement. The Hufflepuff girl was pretty and the feeling of her leaning on him was certainly pleasant, but she wasn't Ginny. Almost involuntarily his eyes searched the room until he found her, laughing with a fourth year girl whose feet were hidden by a tiny Rhododendron bearing one large red bloom. They looked like they were having a nice time.

As he moved away from Hannah, he bumped into another Hufflepuff, a seventh year named Susannah Martin. "Oophwhat the" he said, turning toward the obstacle in his path.

"Sorry, Harry. Hope I didn't bump anything important," she said, running her hands across his shoulders and down his arms as though she were checking for broken bones. With a smoldering look, she said, "Everything feels all right to me."

Harry just nodded and moved away from her. As he left, he heard Cho say, "You're wasting your time, Susannah."

"Speak for yourself Cho. Just cause your brother won't let you date him, doesn't mean that I can't." She said, putting her hands on her hips indignantly.

Cho pursed her mouth and said, "He's obviously not interested. Besides, my brother just thinks it's dangerous to date Harry. It's not like he disapproves of him or something."

Susannah answered, "Maybe the danger is what makes him so hot — or the sense that he's barely controlling himself. Makes a girl want to"

Harry didn't hear the rest. He was appalled. Girls like Susannah only saw him as the famous Harry Potter. They just admired someone they'd conjured out of their own imaginations. It wasn't real. Moving out of earshot, Harry again sought out Ginny in the crowd. Now she was flanked by two fourth year boys. They were hanging on her every word as she demonstrated the spell.

As the meeting broke up, Harry's friends helped him put things away. Ron was sensitive to the fact that Harry had followed Ginny with his eyes through most of the evening. He thought it might be good to give them a little time alone. "Let's go to the library, Hermione," Ron said, pulling on her arm. "Don't tell me I have to twist your arm to get you to go to visit the books? Are you feeling all right?"

She laughed softly and let Ron lead her out the door of the Room of Requirement. "Just promise me you'll fill us in on what Moody tells you, Harry," she called over her shoulder. Ron reached back to shut the door only to have his efforts stopped by Harry's foot.

Opening the door wider so he and Ginny could walk through, Harry said, "I'll go with you. I need to pick up a book. Then I have to take these essays down to the Defense classroom. Coming, Ginny?"

Ron was shaking his head at Harry in disbelief. Taking that as a hint, Ginny smiled and said, "No, I finished my homework earlier. See you later." Giving Harry a sweet smile, she headed off toward Gryffindor tower with a wave over her shoulder.

Finally noticing the withering look Ron was giving him, Harry said, "OhI guess I'll check out that book tomorrow. I didn't realize how late it was." Without waiting for a reply, he bounded down the stairs to go to Moody's classroom.

Watching Harry's retreat, Ron said, "He'll never get anywhere with her unless we help him, Hermione."

"Maybewell, maybe he's just a bit too busy to think about anything else, Ron. You can't push these things. Look how long it took for us to get together." She smiled and put her hand into his as they continued toward the library. "We better hurry. The library closes in a few minutes."

Down in the Defense classroom, Harry put the graded essays on Moody's desk and picked up some that had just been turned in. Behind him he thought he heard the scrape of a chair. His face relaxed into the first happy smile of the evening. "That was quick," he said.

"I had your cloak in my bag," Ginny answered, stepping out of Harry's Invisibility Cloak. "I've been right behind you all the way down the stairs." She giggled.

Harry waved his hand at the door, locking it and putting wards in place to keep people away from the Defense classroom. Stepping close to Ginny, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her gently. "I've wanted to do that all day," he said softly, keeping her close for a moment.

"You looked like you were going to hex Dean before class this morning." Ginny smiled. Then she looked as though she just remembered something and hit him lightly on the upper arm. "What about you? What am I supposed to think when Hannah Abbott tries to wear you like a sweater"

He rolled his eyes and said, "What gets into girls like that?" Seeing her amusement, he said, "Don't answer thatlet's not waste our time talking about them. Tell me about your day."

He cast a cushioning charm and sat down on Moody's desk. Ginny joined him. They talked for the next half-hour leaning on each other and laughing. Talking in their mirrors was nice, but for the last couple of weeks, they'd been meeting alone like this. Both relished the time alone, away from crowds and prying eyes.

"I think Ron's on to us, Harry." Ginny had just finished explaining the awkward dinnertime conversation she'd had with her older brother.

"So what if he is. I told you, I'm willing to face your overprotective brothers if you areBesides, Ron's still worried about Dean." Harry wasn't really sure he wanted to face Ron who seemed to dislike all of Ginny's boyfriends. He was just trying to be supportive.

Harry was relieved when Ginny answered, "Well I'm not ready to face anyone. Besides, you said it could be dangerous if anyone finds out."

He looked at her young innocent face and thought about the pain she would go through if Death Eaters kidnapped her. It was only luck that had spared her at the Burrow last summer. He pulled at the edge of her sleeve. "I just want you to be safe. But Voldemort is the one I'm worried about, not Ron."

Ginny smiled. "We just have to find the right moment to tell him. And don't worry. I'm sure he'll be all right about it. Ron wants us to be together. He's always hinting at it."

"I don't knowAt breakfast he wanted me to help him get rid of anyone who wants to date you. He says no one's good enough for youI think I agree with him." He reached over and put a strand of her hair behind her shoulder. "You're amazing," he said quietly, leaning his forehead against hers.

"Ohyou just like my freckles," she said softly, thinking he was definitely getting better at the compliments. She couldn't resist the urge to tease him a little.

"The freckles, the hair, the nose, the mouth" said Harry, lightly kissing each feature as he listed them, ending in a good night kiss that left them both a little breathless. "I better walk you back to Gryffindor before Moody comes back from the Order meeting."

Right on cue, they heard someone in the Defense Office call, "Potter? What are you doing here so late at night."

They jumped off the desk and Ginny scrambled to put on the Invisibility Cloak. Harry stopped her and said, "Don't bother. He can see right through it."

As Moody entered the classroom from his office, Harry said, "Good evening, Professor. How was the meeting? I just brought down some graded essays for you and picked up the next batch. Ginny's just keeping me company." The two teenagers tried to look innocent.

Amused at their discomfort, Moody grumbled, "Is that what they're calling it these days?" He raised his eyebrows and smirked at them. "Well, thanks for helping me grade things, Potter. I'll see you tomorrow morning. Best get off to your dormitory. It's good that you aren't walking alone at night, even in the castle. Even Dumbledore doesn't know everything about Hogwarts. These walls can still hold surprises so mind how you go." With that warning and an absentminded wave, he dismissed them.

Relieved that the old Auror hadn't questioned them further, they left in a hurry. It wasn't until later that night when he was trying to fall asleep that Harry realized Moody hadn't said a single word about the Order meeting — maybe because Ginny was there. Finding it difficult to sleep, he promised himself that he would get someone, probably Lupin or Moody, to tell him what happened.

The following evening, Harry, Ron and Hermione relaxed in front of the fire. Ron watched the chessboard carefully. He wasn't planning his next chess move. He was considering how to help Harry and Ginny. Aloud he said, "Bishop to E5." His bishop walked slowly over to Harry's knight and decapitated it, ending the game.

Hermione looked over the top of her Ancient Runes book and smiled at them. Harry was one of the few people who would still agree to play chess with Ron. It was a measure of their friendship, considering that Harry seldom won. They were almost alone in the common room. Some first years were engrossed in a game of Exploding Snap at a table by the window.

"Do you want to play, Hermione?" asked Ron hopefully.

"Do you mean chess, Ron?" Hermione answered somewhat suggestively arching her eyebrow as she leveled her gaze at him. Since she had endured weeks of Harry and Ron teasing her about how she couldn't think clearly after kissing Ron, she was starting a tease of her own. Two could play at this. She would say and do things, just to send Ron a little off balance.

Ron's eyes glazed over thinking about what else they could play. Completely distracted, his face soon matched his hair.

Harry looked at his friends and shook his head. He had the feeling they wanted to be alone. Sighing, he said, "I just remembered I still have to check out that book from the library. Thanks for the game, Ron."

They were glad to see him go, but not for the reason Harry thought. Once he disappeared through the portrait hole, Ron sat next to Hermione on the couch. "Now we can talk. I think it's time for action. We need a plan — or maybe we should just slip Harry some of Fred and George's Talking Truth Taffy. Apparently, it makes you say everything you think out loud. You have to tell the truth. We can give it to Harry and make Ginny sit nearby. From the looks he gives her, it wouldn't take long for him to spill."

Hermione looked worried. "I don't know, Ron. That could really backfire. Harry's a complicated person. He could say something awful. Or talk about things that are supposed to be kept secret."

Ron put his arm around her shoulder reassuringly. "You're right. Don't worry. We'll stick to non-magical resources. Have you had a chance to sound out Parvati yet?"

She set her book down completely and leaned her head on Ron's shoulder. "Parvati has never been shy about telling us all about the men in her life. You would blush to hear what she said about you and Harry fourth year. She's been pretty secretive about how she feels about Dean -- for her. But she's already working on Dean. We don't need to do anything more about that." She was talking animatedly, clearly enjoying her subject. Ron was thinking about how cute she looked when she was excited about something.

She turned toward Ron and placed her hands, palm down on his chest. Hermione noticed his gaze was fixed on her lips. Their faces were only inches apart, but she kept talking. "But are you sure we should interfere with Harry and Ginny? They seem to be getting along just fine. Maybe they have more going on than we know about. I mean, they must have been using those mirrors to speak in secret for months." Hermione finished with a sigh like she wasn't really sure of things.

Ron had listened carefully while she spoke, but now she was so close he couldn't resist. He leaned in swiftly and gave Hermione a sensual kiss on her mouth. She made a little sound of appreciation, suddenly aware that they were almost alone. All thoughts of Ginny and Harry were gone as she put her arms around Ron's neck.

Ron broke the kiss and continued the conversation. "You're right. Our efforts have paid off so far. How could we have known Harry and I would get kidnapped if we arranged a double date? I think we need to arrange for Harry and Ginny to be alone together. It worked last summer. Now that we are back at school, Harry is always busy and Ginny...well, she always has a bunch of blokes around her. We have to put a stop to that. Have you thought of anything?"

Hermione was now watching his lips as he spoke. He put his finger under her chin and lifted her gaze up to his eyes. She swallowed hard. She realized that Ron wanted her to focus on something. "I think you have a good plan, Ron," she said, thinking that she had a fifty-fifty chance of that being an appropriate response.

"You weren't listening were you?" Ron couldn't hide his smirk. I must be good at this kissing thing,' he thought. Aloud, he asked, "How can we give Ginny and Harry a chance to be alone?"

Blocking out the feel of his hand now cupping her cheek, she tried to think. "Too bad, Harry doesn't need to rescue her. He likes that sort of thing," she said.

"Brilliant! You're right, Hermione. We just have to arrange for Harry to think she needs rescuing and that will draw him out. It won't matter that it isn't a real rescue. It will only matter that they have a private moment. Nature will do the rest." Ron looked at her with such appreciation; it took a great effort for her to concentrate on their conversation.

So they agreed that Ron would arrange for some extra Quidditch practice the following night. While Harry and he were working out on the pitch, Hermione would send a mysterious note saying that Ginny was missing.

Hermione was assigned to keep Ginny from going with them to Quidditch. She was supposed to need Ginny to meet her by the lake to talk about something important where they couldn't be overheard. Hermione thought the Astronomy Tower would be a more romantic spot, but Ron wasn't really ready for his sister to be alone with Harry in the most popular snogging spot of the school. He wanted them together, but not too together. Besides, Harry might be suspicious.

In Hermione's opinion, Ginny would definitely be suspicious, but who was she to argue with the mastermind? Especially when he was so adorable.

The first part of the plan went pretty well. Parvati was definitely being more forward with Dean. In fact, she kept him completely preoccupied at dinner. Ginny didn't seem to notice.

Harry sat across from Ginny laughing about a story she was telling about Robbie Johnson in Herbology. Robbie was a Muggle born who never ceased to find the wilds of Greenhouse three daunting. His curiosity was always getting the better of him so he'd poke into something that he had no business poking into. He would wind up being choked by a Fingertip Vine or trapped by a Thimbleberry bush.

Ron tried to distract Harry about five times, but with little success. He nodded in Hermione's direction. She gave a little shrug, thinking maybe their plan wasn't necessary. Finally, he tried the direct approach saying, "Harry, if you're done eating, I want to show you those new goalkeeping moves I was telling you about."

Brow furrowed in confusion, Harry responded, "I don't remember..."

Ron cut him off. "No one listens to me anymore!" he said, sounding really exasperated. "The Gruton move...the Sratton feint...sounding familiar now?" Ron was making this up as he went.

Hermione smothered a smile, shaking her head at Ron's audacity. Harry bought it. He looked genuinely contrite and said, "Sorry, Ron. I've been so busy lately. I guess I haven't been listening. Of course we can go practice, just the two of us. I'm finished. We can leave right now if you like." They left the table to change and get their Quidditch gear.

When the two girls were left alone, Hermione asked, "Do you have some free time tonight, Ginny?"

"I have piles of homework, Hermione. No time to play. Don't you have to study?" she asked. Hermione was usually buried in work.

"Yes, but I think I've found a clue about Harry's torch mystery. I needI mean Harry needs our help. Your help," Hermione said, mentally kicking herself for not preparing a speech.

She was surprised when Ginny narrowed her eyes and asked, "Is this about the Enchanted Forest?" She liked the sound of an Enchanted Forest and one of the poems was about a forest with golden snidgets or some such thing. It sounded beautiful.

"I'm not sure." Looking around the Great Hall suspiciously, Hermione lowered her voice to a whisper and said, "I don't think we should talk about this here. Could you meet me at the tree by the lake where we had that picnic last summer? I'll go up to my room and get my book and we can go over the passage I found then. I'll meet you there in half an hour. Anyone might be listening here."

Ginny looked confused. Hermione tried to give her a knowing look and a nod. "All right, Hermione, but I expect a full explanation when we meet at the tree. Why all the secrecy? I don't think anyone is listening to us here."

"Shhh..." added Hermione, reacting to her answer with exaggerated concern. "You just never know."

Hermione went upstairs slowly. The plan was for her to send a note to Ron that said Ginny had suddenly gone missing. She took her time climbing to the owlery so that the note wouldn't arrive too soon. Ginny needed time to get down to the tree by the lake. She looked at her watch. Almost time.

Down on the Quidditch pitch, Ron was gamely trying out his new fake moves. Harry wasn't convinced they would be any help in a real game situation, but he tried to give Ron a good workout.

Then one of the school owls flew onto the pitch and headed for Ron. Harry flew over next to him. He recognized Hermione's handwriting. "What's going on? Getting love notes from Hermione in the middle of Quidditch training? She just saw you at dinner. Can't she wait an hour or two?" Harry smiled at his friend and flew away so Ron could read his note in private.

Ron gave a shout. "It is from Hermione, but it's about Ginny! She's gone missing and Hermione is worried because she left all her stuff in the Great Hall. No one knows where she is? She wants you to get the Marauder's Map and find her."

Suddenly realizing that he hadn't slipped his little blue mirror into his Quidditch clothes, Harry panicked. "Where could she have gone? What could have happened? Hogwarts is supposed to be safe!"

Ron answered, seeing the panic on Harry's face, "I don't know. These days who can tell? Go get the map, Harry. I'll take care of everything else. Don't waste time." As Harry flew away toward the entrance to the school, Ron yelled, "Hurry, Harry!" Then he chuckled to himself.

The sun was getting low in the sky by the time Ginny made it down to the tree. There was a nice view of the hills surrounding Hogwarts and the lake. The castle lights were beginning to shine and the light in the air was golden. Ginny was glad for a breath of fresh air. She leaned her chin on her fist and watched the quarter-moon rise over the hills.

Lost in thought, she didn't hear anyone arriving until a twig cracked loudly. She looked up to see Vincent Crabbe looking sheepish while his two companions stared at him derisively. Turning his attention to Ginny, Draco Malfoy said, "All alone out here, Weasley?"

In a flash she had drawn her wand. "Leave me alone, Malfoy! You and your goons keep your distance!"

The Slytherin trio, drew their wands in return. "Three against one, Weasley. What can a little girl like you do against us?" Malfoy answered. His two hulking friends smirked at her and nodded.

"So you've forgotten last June, have you?" Ginny answered, sizing up her options. Her eyes were searching the path toward the school for Hermione.

"On the contrary, I remember your stupid little spell very well. But I'm not one to hold a grudge." Draco drawled his reply. He was tapping his wand in his hand and leering at her. "Now that I have my chance to talk to you. Maybe we could just get to know each other better." He smiled softly, trying to look charming with his perfect blond hair and immaculate clothes.

Ginny felt a cold shiver run up her spine. Where are you, Hermione?' she thought.

Draco sat down on a large rock and made himself comfortable, pulling a bag of cookies out of his bag. He helped himself to one. "Mmmthese are great," he said. Crabbe looked like he wanted one, but Goyle elbowed him and shook his head.

Reaching for another one, Draco said, "Mum sends me these every week. They're delicious. Chocolate covered marshmallow with a crumbly cookie center. Would you like one?"

Ginny stared in disbelief at the peace offering Malfoy was holding out. Why would the most evil Slytherin in the sixth year want to make friends with her? Until now, he'd never done anything but insult and threaten her.

Harry pushed his Firebolt as fast as he could go to the main entrance to the castle. Once inside and past the main doors, he got back on his broom and flew up the stairwell to Gryffindor. The map was in his trunk. He found her name quickly. She was down by the lake. Relieved he decided that maybe she'd just taken a solitary walk. He pulled out his mirror and said, "Ginny Weasley," fully expecting to see her face appear. Nothing happened. He tried it again. Nothing.

Back to panicking, he flew out the open window toward the lake. He flew as fast as he had ever flown. Every minute could matter. The dot on the map had clearly shown her by the lake. Why wouldn't she answer him? Suddenly it occurred to him that she might not be alone. He slowed down and pulled out the map again. Sure enough, Malfoy and his goons were with her.

Pushing the Firebolt back up to full speed. He arrived at the tree by the lake, landing silently at a reasonable distance. She was surround by the three Slytherins, looking furious. Crabbe and Goyle were holding her arms and Draco was holding something under her nose.

Harry sent off two stunners, dropping the big goons like stones. The moment they fell, Ginny leapt into action. First she grabbed whatever Malfoy was holding up to her, then she kicked him in the shins. When he cried out in pain, she shoved whatever it was into his mouth, shouting, "You like it so much, you eat it!"

"Ginny!" Harry cried out, running toward her. Malfoy was still standing inches from the angry redhead, probably preparing some horrible retaliation.

Reaching her side, Harry realized that Malfoy had more to fear from Ginny than she had from him. In fact, the slim blond boy didn't seem angry with her at all. He was standing in front of her with a dreamy, eyes-glazed expression.

Watching Ginny with her hands on her hips, looking around for her wand, Harry was glad she wasn't mad at him. Quietly, he summoned her wand and handed it to her. "How about you finish him off with a Bat Bogey Hex, Gin? I've always wanted to see that one."

Her lips were trying to work into a smile at Harry's arrival, but she was still fuming from the anger she felt toward Malfoy and his buddies. She was amazed to see Harry, grinning at her with admiration. He seemed to have arrived out of thin air. She took a little bow and said, "Glad you find this entertaining, Harry."

"I'm so relieved to see you, Ginny. You had us all worried." Harry reached up and put a stray lock of hair behind her ear, wishing they were alone.

Realizing that Malfoy was still staring at Ginny with a goofy grin on his face, Harry asked, "What's wrong with Malfoy?" He waved his hand in front of the Slytherin's face without getting a reaction.

"What did you do to him, Harry?" Ginny asked.

Harry laughed incredulously. "Me? I didn't do anything. You were the one who was fighting with him. I'm just an innocent bystander. "

Pointing to the two big lumps that were unconscious on the ground, Ginny said, "Innocent? I don't think soyou had to have been the one to stun these two. I didn't even have my wand."

Harry shrugged his shoulders and said, "I had to do something. It looked like they were trying to hurt you. What were they doing, Ginny?"

She waved her hand in front of Malfoy's face, too — still no reaction. "It was kind of silly as Malfoy conversations go -- none of the usual threats. Instead, he offered me one of his Mum's chocolate cookies and when I refused, he went kind of crazy. Crabbe and Goyle held my arms and he tried to make me eat the cookie."

Turning to Harry, she looked affectionately into his eyes. "Then you showed up to rescue me. Thanks." She reached up and kissed his cheek.

At this Draco Malfoy sprung into action. He threw himself down on his knees at Ginny's feet and grabbed her hand. "You're so beautiful -- the perfect woman. Forget about him. You and I were meant to be together." Then he clapped his hand over his mouth. His pale blue eyes were wide with panic.

His pleading couldn't have surprised Ginny and Harry more. Their eyes went wide, too. She tried without success to pull her hand away. Harry yelled menacingly, "Let go of her, Malfoy!" He couldn't think what the Slytherin could be playing at, but he knew that in all his years at Hogwarts, Malfoy had never done or said anything nice.

"No!" Draco shouted still clinging to her hand down on his knees. "Ginny, I'll do anything you say. You've only to ask. You're so amazing — a goddess." He stuffed his free hand into his mouth and grimaced as though he were in pain.

Ginny rolled her eyes. This was too much. He must be just making fun of her. She shouted at him, "Then let go of my hand, Malfoy. Who said you could touch me?"

Surprised that Draco immediately complied, she turned to Harry and said, "This is too weird. Let's get out of here."

Holding out his broom, Harry said, "Sounds good. I brought transportationIt's a two-seater." He smiled at her winningly.

"Sure it is, Harry," said Ginny, laughing at him. She was really so relieved that he showed up. She wasn't sure her legs would work. The Firebolt was a welcome sight.

"Shall we?" Harry said, offering her his hand.

She climbed onto the back of his broom. Breathing in that scent that was unique to Harry, she relaxed and wrapped her arms around him. This was where she belonged.

Harry patted her hands, which were clasped around his waist and said, "Hold on tight." As they took off, they could hear Malfoy shouting something, but neither of them looked back.

Flying with Ginny! Harry had dreams like this, really pleasant dreams. Putting Malfoy's bizarre behavior out of his mind, he flew high and looped into a spiral dive, then he took them up to buzz the Astronomy tower.

Ginny didn't complain. Harry was a really good flyer. She trusted him completely. She felt wonderful.

The stars were beginning to shine as the sky darkened to a deep teal blue. The feel of the wind in his hair and Ginny's soft, musical laughter in his ear was the best feeling in the world, not to mention her arms clasped around him and her warmth pressed up behind him. He took an extra trip past the tower just to lengthen his time with her before landing gently near the front entrance.

Ginny was still laughing and smiling as she stepped off his broom. "Thanks for the ride, Harry," she said. He held her hand as they turned toward the castle.

As they reached the steps leading to the entry, Harry stopped. Still holding her hand, he said, "Wait, we won't have a moment alone when we walk back through those doors." He turned so they were facing each other.

Her eyes widened as she saw the intense expression on his handsome face. Suddenly her heart was beating wildly, so wildly, she wondered if he could hear it. She forced herself to look into his eyes. She saw the same vulnerable look she always saw. It calmed her. This was the same Harry she had come to know so well. She smiled at him.

That small smile was all the encouragement he needed. Without a word, he leaned in and brushed his lips against hers, softly, like a he had after the Quidditch match.

With her hair shining gold and red as the castle torches began to burn, and her eyes bright with happiness, he searched her face as though memorizing it. "Malfoy was right about one thing," he said. "You're so beautiful."

Ginny found her voice. "Idon't know what to say, Harry. I" she brought her mouth back to his without finishing her sentence. Pressing her lips gently to his, a rush of warmth ran through them both.

When they broke the kiss, Harry pulled her gently into his arms and held her. She was too important for him to take any risks. In her ear, he whispered, "You can count on me, Gin. I'll keep you safe."

Sheltered in the circle of his arms, she knew it was true.

Thanks! Your reviews are important to me. Notes to reviewers:

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Lourdes1: Thanks for your encouragement. My hands have improved. The sympathy really did make me feel better. At least I have this older computer so I can keep going. I appreciate your kind words about my story. Thanks for reviewing!

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Happy Snakes Rule: Thanks for your review! Hope you liked the fluff in this chapter. There will be more action next time.

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Nightwing509: Thanks for writing! Voldemort is still out there, but this chapter was mainly about Harry and Ginny. The action/ adventure aspect of this story heats up in the next chapter.

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Wytil: Thanks for the sympathy. It really made me feel better. Two fingers are still healing, but otherwise my hands are fine. The computer is a gonner. I can't imagine how you managed with the sewing machine software computer. You must be a computer whiz. Thanks for reviewing!

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athenakitty: Thanks for writing! Ron recovered easily from the head injury, but he's getting himself all worked up over Harry and his sister. Harry is keeping his growth spurt in magical power to himself for now. Soon he'll have to use those powers in front of people. That will blow his cover.

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Gryphonmistress: Ginger and Bolt, eh? That does sound cool. They will start being more of a team in this story, and there will be pranks Thanks for reviewing!

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Hikuro Hoshi: Thanks for your kind comments. Hope chapter 17 was fast enough. Thanks for writing a review!

sambow24: Thanks for your review! Everyone does need a place. I'm glad you agree.

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Hadas: There will definitely be more Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione moments. Now Malfoy has to be sorted out. Thanks for writing a review!

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Hunta: Thanks for your review! There is a Merlin connection, but maybe not an obvious one. Harry wised up some in this chapter, but it will take a while to live down the freckle thing.

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Iluvatar: I'm tryingThanks for writing!

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tifenn: Thanks for reviewing! There will be some more pranks. I like them, too.

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Lily and James Potter: Thanks for your nice comments. Ron is such fun. He's trying to be a good friend and brother. What they have is a failure to communicate. Thanks for reviewing!

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Ted M. Hammett: Thanks for commenting on Luna's kangaroo theory. I think you're the only one who has. I hope this chapter helped relieve some of the Harry/ Ginny frustration. There will be more to their story. I'm sorry you lost that girl. It is sad. Thanks for reviewing!

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Sakura Sayoran: Thanks for your reviews! I needed the encouragement. You made my day. Hope you liked the Harry/Ginny progress in this chapter.

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harry potter (junior): Thanks for writing a review! Good suggestion about Harry and Dean dueling. You may see something like that soon. The next chapter does have more action!

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Cicatriz: Thanks for the good advice. I definitely do not plan to have either character become jealous of other people. You're right about that plot line wearing thin. Thanks for reviewing!


	18. Something's in the Air

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks, Zijnehoogheid. I fixed it! Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read and review! Notes are at the end of the story. But just let me take this moment to cheer -- It's almost June!

Chapter 18

Something's in the Air

The rain was pouring down in sheets. Safe in Hagrid's hut, Harry looked out the window at the Forbidden Forest, hidden behind a gray curtain. Fang filled a chair by the fire, his drooling tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth. The door opened and a dripping wet Hagrid came in.

"'Allo there, 'Arry! Didn't expect to find you 'ere!" Hagrid gave him a wide smile. "How about a cuppa?"

"Sorry to let myself in, Hagrid. I was out for a run and it began to pour…Fang didn't seem to mind." Harry said.

"Ha! That's one of the great things about Fang. He's a friendly sort of watchdog." The giant set about putting the kettle on while his guest sank into a chair. Bringing the tray over by the fire something bright caught his eye, "What's that around your neck…I'd never've pegged you for wearin' jewelry."

Touching the gold band around his neck, Harry shrugged and said, "It isn't really jewelry…it's one of those things from my family's box. It's a Celtic torque. Anyway, that's what we think it is." He had transfigured the thick gold piece so that it appeared to be an extremely thin gold band embedded with three miniscule rubies. He wore it under his clothes. No one could see it under his school uniform, but in his running gear, the faint glint of gold peeked out from the top of his tee shirt.

For a while they settled down comfortably in front of the fire to drink their tea and talk quietly. Hagrid told Harry about his plans to visit France during the winter holidays. Noticing Harry's brow furrowing, he asked, "Somethin' on your mind there 'Arry?"

"Nothing really, Hagrid. I was thinking about what Hogwarts was like when my parents were here — during the first war with Voldemort. Did some students support him?"

With a serious look, Hagrid answered, "Those were dark times. No one knew who supported…You Know Who. We only knew there must be some supporters among the Hogwarts students. Just like now. Things may not seem as bad because the war isn't underway yet. Only stands to reason that some'll support him…when the time comes."

Warmed by the fire, the tea and the friendly chat, Harry braved the storm and ran back to Gryffindor to get ready for the day.

Meanwhile, the breakfast scene was pretty much the same as always, except that Ginny was sitting with Ron and Hermione staring quietly into her teacup. His voice full of concern, Ron asked, "Aren't you going to eat anything, Ginny?"

At least that's what Ginny thought he said. She was too sleepy to pay attention. Although she was grateful to him for insisting she move over to join him, leaving her group of admirers a few seats away, she wasn't fully awake. Her response to his question was to turn her head toward him and squint.

Hermione gave him an indulgent look, then said to Ginny, "You look pretty tired for someone who goes to bed early every night."

"She's never been a morning person no matter how much sleep she's had. Might be best to leave her alone until she's had some more tea," Ron whispered.

Hermione whispered back, "Maybe we could find a way to inject the caffeine into her. Muggles have a thing called an I.V. It puts liquid straight into your blood."

Shaking his head at his girlfriend, Ron said, "You have some frightening ideas sometimes, Hermione."

Ginny just lifted her eyebrows sleepily and settled back into studying her cup.

A scuffle near the door drew everyone's attention. Crabbe and Goyle were there holding Malfoy's arms and wrestling with the blond boy who was carrying a large bouquet of red roses. Pansy Parkinson was with them talking animatedly.

Suddenly Malfoy shouted, "Are those chocolate croissants for breakfast?" His large, lumbering captors turned to check the serving trays, loosening their grip on him. He took advantage of this and slipped away, shouting, "Ginny!" rather desperately.

Pansy yelled, "Stop him, you idiots." Crabbe and Goyle lunged for him, tackling him to the floor. Pansy muttered, "You know this is for your own good…_Stupefy!_" Malfoy went limp. Goyle scooped him up and carried him out of the Great Hall with Pansy and Crabbe following close behind.

"What was that all about?" Hermione asked.

With a shrug, Ginny answered, "How should I know?"

"Well…he did shout your name," said Ron, looking annoyed.

Ginny shrugged again and sipped her tea. Her eyes widened as Harry approached. She sat up straight and moved over so he could sit down.

"So…what happened to Malfoy?" Harry asked. He'd watched as Pansy and the boys carried Draco away from the Great Hall, the remains of his red rose bouquet strewing potpourri in his wake.

After Ron explained the little breakfast drama, Ginny asked, "Do you think there was something in that cookie he tried to make me eat?"

"What cookie?" Ron asked. Ginny and Harry took turns explaining the scene with Malfoy and his goons down by the lake.

Ginny added, "Where were you last night, Hermione? I waited for you."

"Umm…I got caught up…" She twisted a lock of curly brown hair guiltily. She and Ron had spent the entire evening alone in the Muggle Studies classroom congratulating themselves on the success of their plan.

Harry joined in. He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "What were you thinking sending a letter to Ron saying Ginny was missing? You'd just told her to meet you at the lake…What were you two playing at? Malfoy could have hurt Ginny." Hermione turned an attractive shade of pink.

"But you were there to save her! Well done, Harry." Ron tried to sound like that was the end of the conversation. "Is that the time? We'd better get to class." Hermione and he stood up and beat a hasty exit.

An amused Harry and Ginny watched them go. "Do you think we'll ever find out what that was about?" Ginny asked.

"Probably not." He made a face at her, then smiled. "I suspect they just wanted some time alone. Ron didn't come up to bed until after midnight. I don't think his prefect duties were keeping him occupied." Opening the copy of the Daily Prophet that Hermione had left behind, Harry was soon scanning every page.

Neville joined them at the table. "What do you two have your heads together about? Planning another prank, Ginny? Everyone's saying you played a good one on Draco Malfoy — slipped him a love potion or something. What's next…and can I help?

"I didn't do anything to Malfoy. He did it to himself." Ginny felt she had a reputation to protect. Turning to Harry who was still turning the pages in search of something, she asked, "What's so interesting in the Prophet?"

Harry's forehead was furrowed as he continued to turn pages. "There's nothing in here about Sirius' name being cleared…I mean Pettigrew was caught and convicted. What more will it take? They sent an innocent man to Azkaban for twelve years…They know that now." He shook his head.

"You mean your godfather…right?" Neville said. "Sorry, Harry."

"Thanks, Neville," Harry answered. If anyone in the school understood his need to stick up for the people in his life, it was Neville. They both lived with the hope of righting past wrongs.

Luna floated over to the Gryffindor table and sat down on the other side of Ginny. The two girls began talking about their Charms homework. Neville was suddenly very interested in his food.

"I need to talk to Remus," Harry said aloud to no one in particular, setting the paper down on the table. He'd tried unsuccessfully to contact Lupin for two days, even trying to firecall him from Moody's office. No one seemed to be home at Grimmauld Place. "I need to find out what happened." He sounded frustrated.

"Well, you won't find out by reading the Prophet," said Luna, shaking her head sympathetically. She handed him the latest copy of the Quibbler. There was a grainy photo of an odd looking furry creature on the front and a headline that read, "Blood-Sucking Bugbears: Are They Hibernating in Your Neighborhood?"

"Thanks, Luna…it's good to keep informed," Harry said politely, looking into her slightly bulging eyes. He could sense the sincerity behind her gesture.

Ginny knew that Harry meant that he needed to know what happened at the Order of the Phoenix meeting, but she couldn't think of anything that would help. None of the Order members were present at the head table so there wasn't anyone to ask. "Why don't you go down to Defense class early and see if Professor Moody's around." She smiled at him sweetly. "I'll go with you if you like." Harry closed the newspaper and they left to find Professor Moody.

Arriving at the Defense classroom, Harry called to the Professor. A black cloaked figure emerged from Moody's office and said dryly, "Professor Moody isn't in. I'm assuming you aren't bellowing for me, Potter. Or you'd show more manners. Then again, perhaps not."

Harry stopped himself from responding in kind. Instead he looked around to see if they were alone and said, "What happened at the Order meeting, Professor?" His concern over Remus Lupin's absence had conjured up images of secret Order missions gone wrong.

Snape raised an eyebrow and said, "I've told you before…the walls of this castle have ears." He sneered at both of them, then gave Ginny a meaningful look.

With an impatient wave of his hand, Harry sealed the classroom shut and encased just Snape and himself within a crystal dome. Ginny jumped back from the glass and rolled her eyes. She knew Harry was upset, but this was a little over the top.

Within the dome, Harry looked Snape straight in the eye and said, "No one can hear us now…Sir. Can you give me a straight answer?"

Snape had spent most of his adult life in the company of very powerful wizards. If he was impressed with Harry's display of power, he didn't show it. Instead he rubbed his arm absent-mindedly and said, "I spent last evening in a more intimidating presence than yours, Potter. I suggest you ask your werewolf friend what business the Order conducted in your absence. Now let me out of this overgrown cup you've created." His black eyes seemed blank, but he looked away as Harry's bright green eyes bored into his. He wasn't in the mood to match Legilimency skills.

"Wait! What did you want to tell me about Blood Charms, Professor? Do you know what Voldemort is planning?" Harry remembered Snape's previous warning.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to speak his name in my presence? The Dark Lord will not suffer traitors easily. He doesn't tell anyone about his plans. Least of all me." Snape seemed to age right in front of Harry, as though the worries of his life were wearing him down.

"All right, Professor," Harry said, removing the dome and the wards sealing in the room. Knowing that Voldemort didn't trust Snape didn't make the Potions Professor any more reliable in Harry's view.

Recovering enough to make his usual lip-curled snarl, Snape said, "That will be detention served with Mr. Filch and twenty points from Gryffindor for disrespect." Harry looked up to see some Hufflepuff students who'd just opened the door. They were giving him sympathetic looks as Snape dished out his punishment and left in a swirl of black robes. Colin Creevey and some other Gryffindors filtered in to the classroom.

Ginny gave Harry a questioning look to which he replied with a shake of his head. She smiled at him. The appreciative look he gave her in return did not go unnoticed by the students coming through the door for Defense class.

One student in particular followed Ginny's gaze and gave Harry a sinister look. Looking back at Ginny like she hung the moon, he shouted, "At last, we can be together." With that startling cry, Draco Malfoy flung himself down on his knees in front of her and said, "I've been searching for you everywhere. You're so beautiful, so lovely. Please just let me sit at your feet and tell you how wonderful you are."

His blond hair was out of place like he'd been running, but his expensive robes looked perfectly pressed. He looked up at her, his pale eyes glazed over with adoration.

Colin, Harry and several others pulled out their wands, but Malfoy didn't notice.

"What was in that cookie, Malfoy?" Ginny asked, trying to pry her hand loose from his death grip.

"M…mm…marshmallow, Ch…choc…colate and a l…love slave potion." He stuttered as though he was struggling to stop himself from speaking. "I can't lie to you. You're too perfect. I am your servant." He lay his cheek on her hand.

"Ew…a love slave potion! You've got a lot of nerve, Malfoy. You tried to shove that cookie down my throat. How long will it last?" Ginny looked furious.

"Twenty-four hours!" Malfoy said. Then kissed her hand quickly to stop himself from saying anything more.

What happened next happened fast. Colin and another student threatened to curse him. Ginny tried to wrench her hand away from Malfoy's lips. Meanwhile Harry shouted, "Let her go!" He was seeing red at the sight of the Slytherin gripping Ginny's hand.

"No! I won't!" Malfoy yelled back, sounding like a two year old.

Ginny drew her fist back in response, preparing to punch him to get his lips off her hand.

Harry tucked his wand into his pocket. Grabbing Malfoy's arm, he forced him to turn toward him and look into his eyes. A flash of red light appeared all around them. Without another sound Malfoy slithered to the floor in what appeared to be a deep, peaceful sleep.

Harry stepped toward Ginny, his bright green eyes still sparkling. Wishing they were alone, he asked, "All right there?" She smiled her response also wishing the crowd would disappear.

Turning to the others, he said, "I'd better take Malfoy to the infirmary. Maybe Madam Pomfrey has an antidote for that love potion. We can't have him following Ginny around all day." Everyone laughed, relieved that the tension in the room was gone.

Pansy Parkinson appeared at the door with Professor Snape. She had red petals and rose stems stuck in her disheveled hair. "What have you done to him?" she cried.

Snape looked annoyed and said, "I'll take care of him Potter. He's in my house after all. That will be another fifty points from Gryffindor and a second detention. I'll be talking to your head of house about further sanctions. You can't go around attacking people."

"But Harry didn't attack anyone, Professor. Malfoy was bothering Ginny and then he…well, I think he just fainted," one of the Hufflepuffs said.

"Miss Weasley seems unharmed, and yet, Mr. Malfoy is unconscious. It's obvious what happened here. You'll serve that second detention with me, Potter."

"He'll serve no detentions for defending a student, Snape." Moody stomped into the room. "I saw the whole thing from my office. Malfoy was bothering this girl, kneeling in front of her and spouting all sorts of nonsense. And I think you'll find he tried to use a love potion on her. I'd say that's a matter for the Headmaster. Love potions are banned in this school. Now…" Everyone was staring at the old Auror who shouted, "Find your seats and we'll begin!" The students scrambled to their seats.

The following day, Harry was sitting in Dumbledore's office waiting for his tutorial. Fawkes was preening on his perch. He was glad to have some time with the beautiful phoenix. He was in the prime of his cycle, beautiful and fit. Wondering if they had time for a spin around the forest before Dumbledore returned, he said, "We should go flying again soon, Fawkes." The large bird trilled his agreement. Harry thought he understood every note. It calmed and heartened him just like it always did.

The portrait of Phineas Nigellus said, "You're just a thrill seeker like my nephew. He used to fly off on that enchanted motorbike and be gone for days. Of course, I never blamed him for wanting to get away from Grimmauld Place."

"Hello, Professor," said Harry politely, wondering briefly what had happened to Sirius' old motorbike. "How are things at headquarters? Is Professor Lupin there now?" Harry hadn't spoken with his guardian for several days. It appeared that Remus didn't have his mirror with him or was too busy to contact him.

"These are difficult times for the Order, Harry. But I'm sure that Dumbledore will tell you," he said before suddenly feigning sleep.

"Tell me what, Professor?" Harry asked hoping to wake the portrait back up.

"What is it, Harry?" Dumbledore entered the room as silently as ever.

"Is everything all right with the Order, Professor Dumbledore? How's Remus?" If he didn't get a straight answer, he felt like he was going to lose it. He couldn't stand the thought of losing someone else.

"Remus is fine. He's probably headed off to Wolfhaven Inn for the full moon tomorrow night. The Order is having some problems, Harry. You might as well know about them. We seem to have a mole. Just as in the first war, our plans are leaking out. Someone in our inner circle must be giving out information." The usual twinkle was missing from his eyes. His expression was resolute.

This is what Harry wanted. Someone to tell him what was going on — to talk straight. Giving Dumbledore an equally determined look, Harry said, "Whatever I can do to help. You just need to ask." He knew that Professor Dumbledore was a great wizard, accomplished at reading people. If anyone could figure out who the traitor was, it was the Headmaster.

Dumbledore nodded. He appreciated Harry's earnest attitude, but he had to wonder if the teenager was truly able to block Voldemort out of his mind. Perhaps an unwitting traitor was staring back at him with an eager expression. Perhaps he was wrong to trust Harry with the Order's business.

Taking the Headmaster's silence to mean that he wasn't going to discuss any more details, Harry brought up the problem that had been on his mind all day. "Why has nothing been done about clearing Sirius' name? Pettigrew is in prison. That should be all the proof the Ministry needs."

Dumbledore sighed, knowing his explanation was not going to satisfy Harry. "Minister Fudge is a politician. He refuses to give a public acknowledgement of Sirius Black's innocence because he doesn't want any more negative publicity. Even in private he's remained adamant that Black may have been innocent of betraying your parents to Voldemort, but in his fury over their deaths, he caused the death of thirteen Muggles."

Harry couldn't believe it. Anger rising, he yelled, "But Pettigrew confessed to all of it! He told them he framed Sirius for betraying my parents and blowing up that street!"

Dumbledore continued, "Fudge claims that Black admitted his guilt to Fudge personally on the night of the crime. You know he was the first to arrive on the scene."

"So that's it? Nothing else can be done?" Harry was saddened, but he was not about to let this issue drop just because it made Minister Fudge uncomfortable.

Trying to help Harry understand, Dumbledore said, "You must pick your battles well in life, Harry. Now is not the time to alienate the Minister of Magic. Not when he has just come around to our way of thinking about fighting Voldemort and his followers."

"The battles usually pick me, Professor. But I won't walk away from this fight. It doesn't end here." Harry would clear his godfather's name somehow, even if he had to take on Fudge by himself.

"No doubt you are right. The story most assuredly does not end here," said Dumbledore giving Harry a look of approval before beginning their lesson.

At the end of the week, dark clouds filled the sky. Something was in the air. A change, a threat, an unknown presence arrived with the chill wind blowing off the lake. All day, Hogwarts students huddled together as they walked to the greenhouses or out to Hagrid's cabin. It didn't seem like a good time to be off by yourself.

Darkness fell early and the sense of unease persisted. Maybe it was just the excitement of the upcoming Halloween feast. Ginny kept close to Colin and hurried away from the enclosure of unicorns near the edge of the Forbidden Forest. They had stayed after class to help Hagrid feed the young ones. The two foals, who were gold when they were born, had turned almost completely silver.

Ginny was sorry to leave them with the storm stirring, but Hagrid had assured her they would be all right in the small shelter within the enclosure. The shadows were growing and the wind was beginning to howl. As Colin and she walked, she wondered what Harry was doing.

Rhys had cut Harry's fencing lesson short because it was Halloween, so Harry had plenty of time to clean himself up and go down to the Potions classroom before the Hogwarts feast. As he approached the dungeons, Harry felt the hair on the back of his neck rise. Reaching the door of the Potions classroom, Gregory Goyle knocked into Harry's shoulder. Without greeting or apology, the Slytherin hurried away.

Snape was apparently in his office. The bright light of a desk lamp shone from the door into the darkened, torchlit Potions classroom.

Harry checked his Skin Growth Potion. It had been simmering properly for the last two weeks. He took it off the heat and added the ground occamy shells, continuing to stir as it cooled. The Potion thickened and turned white. It looked ready. As he carefully bottled up and labeled a sample, Harry wondered, 'Is it my imagination or is the room growing darker?'

He moved to the door of Snape's office to hand the Professor his work. He always made sure the Professor had accepted his sample before cleaning up his caldron. That way, he couldn't destroy the sample and give Harry a zero on the assignment.

Snape was sitting in a chair in a dark corner of the room with his head bowed. His sleeves were pulled over his hands. His arms were crossed over his chest. Harry thought, 'He does hang around in the shadows. Even when he's by himself.' Harry cleared his throat and said, "Here's my Potion sample, Professor."

Snape's head snapped up at the sound. "Finished at last, Potter? Perhaps I need to start setting a time limit for you."

"I'm just striving for perfection, Professor. Something I've learned from working with you," Harry answered with a straight face and a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

The corner of Snape's mouth twitched. It was almost a smile. "That will be all, then. You don't want to be late to the feast." He dismissed Harry with a wave of his hand.

Back in the classroom, Harry finished clearing away his caldron and supplies. The classroom seemed to grow darker although the torches burned steadily. Harry wondered how that could happen in the dungeon. Even if the sun was going down, that should have no effect down here. It was a mystery to Harry, but he quickly forgot about it as he hurried away. He was anxious to get to the feast and be with his friends.

The Hogwarts Halloween feast was always exciting. When Harry entered the Great Hall, it was already packed with students. He passed first and second years with candy in both hands shouting excitedly to one other. Ron had saved Harry the seat next to him. The air was overcharged with talking and laughter. He couldn't define it, but he felt a jarring note. Maybe he just wasn't in the mood for a party.

Moody and Snape were absent from the staff table. Professor Dumbledore was deep in conversation with McGonagall. Sprout and Flitwick were laughing about something. High above them, the enchanted ceiling was covered with dark clouds, occasionally lit by lightening, but making no sound. "Do you notice anything missing tonight?" asked Harry.

"Like what, Harry? How much more food can you eat?" Ron had heaping helping of everything as usual.

Hermione shook her head at her boyfriend. Keeping his tall frame fed was a daily task that he took very seriously. "Don't tell me you're missing Snape, Harry," she said.

"Oh, I know what's missing. We haven't had anyone play a prank of Malfoy for days." Ron laughed at the thought.

Ever since Malfoy's unfortunate attempt to slip Ginny a love potion, he'd been plagued with teasing and pranks. For the first couple of days, it was just the fifth year Hufflepuffs kissing their hands and murmuring, "I love you!" whenever Draco passed them in the corridor. Then someone convinced Peeves to follow the Slytherin around for an afternoon, showering him with rose petals and making kissing noises. Finally someone, probably an older student, discovered how to animate one of the suits of armor to follow him around for a day and kneel at his feet whenever Draco stopped walking.

Harry laughed, too. They'd been having fun at poor Malfoy's expense, but that wasn't what Harry had on his mind. "Maybe it's the storm. I just feel like something is going on or something is going to happen."

Ginny shuddered. "I know what you mean, Harry. It's been building up all day. Maybe it's just the storm. It seemed to get darker earlier today. The wind was already howling when I walked back from Hagrid's class."

Hermione asked, "Does anyone else think it's odd that Snape and Moody aren't at the feast? I've never known Snape not to be here. Of course, Moody could be off working for the Order. Did he say anything to you this morning, Harry?"

"Not a word. We checked on Hogwarts' wards. He's been teaching me to set personal defense wards so we spent some time walking around the castle checking on the castle defenses after class. Pretty interesting really." Harry poured his pumpkin juice slowly.

"So how were the wards?" asked Ginny. She knew Bill did a lot of work with ward charms, working for Gringotts. Charms was her favorite subject.

"They said to say hello," answered Harry. She smiled at his stupid joke. "Anyway, I just saw Snape down in his office."

"The storm is moving closer," said Hermione as a sudden loud clap of thunder shook the hall startling everyone.

The doors of the hall flew open with great force. The figure of a man dressed in flowing black robes staggered into the room and halfway to the staff table before falling. His face appeared to be covered by a dark scarf. He lay there, flat on his back and motionless.

For a brief moment the hall was quiet. Then kids stood up screaming. At the same time, Dumbledore and Harry from two very different angles, yelled, "_Expecto Patronum!_" Harry's stag leapt forward from the end of his hand. A large silvery phoenix flew from Dumbledore. The two Patroni reached the figure at the same time. With the prongs on its head, the stag lifted the black scarf-like creature into the air where the silvery phoenix clutched it with its talons and carried it high above their heads and hovered.

"Silence!" yelled Dumbledore's magically enhanced voice. "You will all remain seated in this hall until we have a chance to search the castle. Then you will proceed to your dormitories accompanied by your head of house and prefects."

The crowd of students quieted. Most watched, fascinated, as Dumbledore held his wand toward the Patronus hovering overhead, Dumbledore uttered an incantation that no one could hear and the fluttering black scarf disappeared into thin air. The silvery phoenix dissipated shortly after as did Harry's stag.

Harry and Hermione rushed to the figure of Snape who was lying very still. "_Enervate!_" Hermione cried. Snape gasped. This sharp intake of breath was followed by several deep breaths as the Potions Master's eyes fluttered open to take in his surroundings. He started to sit up. "Wait! Lie still, Professor," she urged softly.

"Everyone step back. Give him some room to breathe," said Harry.

The Slytherins were starting to gather around their head of house. Madam Pomfrey arrived to take charge. "Lie still, Severus. Miss Granger is quite correct. You may be a little lightheaded after a Lethifold attack."

At the mention of the Lethifold, the children near enough to hear gasped and began to murmur.

Lethifolds were extremely rare. No one in the room had ever seen one before, including Dumbledore. They usually hid in the shadows and struck their victims in their sleep, making descriptions of them vague. 'It must have attacked Professor Snape as he was meditating or whatever he was doing when I saw him down in his office,' thought Harry.

"Take him to the anteroom, Poppy" said Dumbledore, indicating the small room off the Great Hall where Harry had gone when he was selected as a Triwizard contestant. Conjuring a stretcher underneath a scowling Snape, Dumbledore turned to Harry and asked, "Would you come with me, please?"

Harry accompanied the Headmaster back to the staff table. Ron, Ginny and Hermione followed. Dumbledore looked at the others and smiled. "I was just going to ask Harry to locate Professor Moody. You may take your friends with you if you wish."

Harry scowled. "I think they should wait here until we've searched the castle." He didn't want his friends in danger, especially Ginny.

All at the same time, his friends cried, "No way!" "You can't go out there alone!" and "What if there're more of those?"

"Professor Moody doesn't answer by our usual means of communication. I thought perhaps you could consult your excellent map," suggested Dumbledore, "By all means, take your friends along with you. I have no objection." Seeing that Harry wasn't convinced, he added, "The castle wards do not indicate any significant threats or I wouldn't ask you to do this."

Harry turned to his friends and said, "Fine…all right…but we stay together. The map is up in the dorm. We'll start there." As they moved away from the Great Hall and up the staircase, he asked, "Have any of you been practicing the Patronus Charm?" They shook their heads.

"Did you conjure that Patronus without your wand, Harry?" asked Hermione.

He shrugged his shoulders, thinking, 'So what if I did?'

Hermione answered patiently, "Do you really think that's a good idea, using Wandless Magic in front of so many witnesses? I thought you were going to keep that to yourself."

"I just forgot," said Harry truthfully. It was becoming easier to just cast a spell quickly without fumbling in his robes for his wand. At least it had worked. Maybe no one noticed.

When they reached Gryffindor, the wind was blowing. The windows were wide open bringing the storm inside. Papers and leaves were flying around. Harry shut the windows and surveyed the room. Some evil purpose was behind this. At least that's how it felt. "Maybe the castle wards have been breached. Something seems wrong."

He looked in his trunk for the Marauder's Map. "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good!" he said, tapping the surface of the parchment. Like a spider web being drawn by an invisible hand, lines covered the page.

Looking over his shoulder, Ron said, "There. Moody's up on the Astronomy Tower. He's all alone." Most of the dots on the map were concentrated in the Great Hall.

"Something's not right. Ron, take Ginny and Hermione back to the Great Hall and tell Dumbledore," Harry said. As all three of them began to protest, he shook his head and asked, "Ginny, do you have your mirror with you?" He glanced briefly at Ron to see his reaction.

"Of course, but I won't let you go alone." She held her chin up. Despite her defiant stance, her eyes were pleading with him and her hand slipped into his.

Despite the fact that her brother and Hermione were there, Harry pulled her briefly into a reassuring hug. "It will be all right. Dumbledore needs to know where Moody is as soon as possible. If there are any surprises when I get up there, he should know that, too. I can contact you with our mirrors. Ron will go along to protect you. And Hermione…she has to go, too. She is the only one among the three of you that knows how to conjure a Patronus. She has to go with you to the Great Hall. Otherwise, it may not be safe." He was speaking fast, trying to get all three of them back to the relative safety of the Great Hall.

"Right then. Let's not waste any more time talking about this," said Ron. "Harry knows what he is doing. He won't be up there alone. It's Moody! He's going to be fine with an experienced Auror." His tall strong presence and voice boosted his sister's confidence.

As they reached the door, Harry put a Disillusionment Charm over each of them. "Can't hurt to be prepared," Harry said, letting go of Ginny's invisible hand.

The wind was blowing down the stairwell when he arrived at the Astronomy Tower. Harry couldn't hear anything but the storm. The map still showed Moody alone at the top. Harry could feel the warmth of the gold torque around his neck despite the coolness of the Disillusionment Charm that he placed on himself to disguise his approach. Moody's stealth training was about to be tested in action.

When he reached the top, he found the Defense Professor out cold. He ran the next few steps, shouting, "_Enervate!_"

Moody woke up. Even though he was still sprawled out on the floor, he immediately pulled his wand. With a dazed look still on his face, he shouted gruffly, "Who's there! I'll start throwing hexes if you don't show me who you are!"

Releasing his Disillusionment Charm, Harry stepped toward Moody and said, "It's just me. What happened?"

Moody's only answer was his eyes getting wider as a large, black dragon loomed behind Harry. The warning cry from the beast barely gave Harry enough time to turn around before the dragon lunged at him.

Miraculously, Moody's hastily cast, "_Protego Inferno!_" protected the two of them from the blast of fire that came out of the dragon's mouth. Harry's quick reflexes helped him dive out of the way of the dragon talons, but he was not fast enough to escape the spike on the back of its tail as it turned away. The heavy, sharp spike tore through Harry's robes into his upper arm. Crying out in pain and grabbing the wound, Harry yelled, "Where did a dragon come from!"

The beast looked back over its shoulder as if it had heard Harry's question, but it continued to fly upward in a spiral.

A second, equally fierce looking dragon was approaching. This time Harry had time to throw the Conjunctivitis spell straight into its purple eyes as it flew directly toward Moody and himself. The dragon gave a roar of pain and crashed into the tower, tumbling toward the ground before righting itself and flying off into the dark night.

As the first dragon changed course and flew after the injured one, Harry turned to Moody and asked, "Are you hurt?" He held out his uninjured arm to help the Defense Professor stand up.

Getting to his feet and dusting himself off, Moody looked at Harry suspiciously. Then he growled, "Where did you come from? Get out of here. Go to your rooms. Those beasts could be back any moment." Moody was more worried about Harry's safety than the castle defenses.

Harry ignored his order. "How did dragons get here, Professor? Could someone have sent them?" Harry asked as he and the Auror moved toward the stairs. He could feel a warm trickle of blood running down his arm. The gash stung like crazy.

"Not here," Moody hissed. "Wait until we are inside." The giant, bat-like wings of the black dragons could still be seen in the distance over the Forbidden Forest.

As they hurried down the stairs, Moody said, "I never saw what hit me. Must have been one of those dragons. My head is pounding like I bashed it against the stones…lucky that neither of them finished me off while I was unconscious."

On their way down the main stairwell, Harry described the Lethifold attack on Snape. Then he called Ginny to tell her they were on their way down.

He was relieved when she answered. "We're back in the Great Hall. Nothing's happening here. Some of the teachers and seventh years have gone to search the castle. Did you find Professor Moody?" she asked.

Harry said, "Someone or something knocked Moody out. He's all right now. We're on our way down." He said goodbye and put the mirror back in his pocket. The only sound as they approached the Great Hall was a slight rustle from his feet and the telltale thunk of Moody's artificial leg.

When they reached the main entry, Harry was seized by a pain he hadn't felt in months. His scar was so painful it was blinding him. He gripped the handrail and gasped, "Scar!"

Allowing himself a brief moment to sense things, Harry could tell Voldemort was angry, but that he wasn't nearby. With his head swimming in pain, Harry saw the rather large figure of a Death Eater kneeling down in front of him. The man's head was bowed and he was crying and blubbering incoherently. Voldemort was punishing whoever he was.

With great effort, Harry cleared his mind and put up his mental defenses. He straightened his posture as the pain subsided. If Voldemort was angry, that must be a good sign. Of what, Harry had no clue. As they continued to the bottom of the stairs, the doors to the Great Hall were flung open and a group of students passed by them, led by Terry Boot and Cho Chang.

"We're headed back to Ravenclaw," Terry said without waiting for the question. Cho nodded. She had her wand drawn.

"But…how do you know the way is clear?" Harry asked.

Cho said, "Some of the teachers searched the common rooms and dormitories. Dumbledore said that it will be safe in our houses, but no one is allowed to go anywhere else until the rest of the school is searched. We're going to finish the feast in our common room." As she walked near Harry, she gasped. "What happened to your arm? You're bleeding…I better take you to the infirmary."

"Er…don't worry. It's just a scratch. Anyway, Madam Pomfrey is probably still off somewhere taking care of Snape." Harry gave her a small smile. "I hope you've been practicing your swan, Cho." She smiled back appreciatively and started motioning to her group to move up the stairs.

"What does 'practicing your swan' mean, Potter?" Moody asked. He still looked terrible, white faced and sweaty.

"Just what are you suggesting, Professor?" Harry laughed despite the circumstances. "Her Patronus is a swan."

"Mmmm…how did she learn the Patronus Charm? I suppose it was the D.A. How many other students are capable of producing a Patronus?"

Harry answered, "Only a few in each house — except Slytherin. Maybe I'd better walk them back to their dormitory since Snape is gone."

"I'll do it, Potter." Moody didn't seem too enthusiastic.

"Are you sure? I mean — you seem a little pale. You might have a concussion. We don't know how long you were unconscious." Harry's concern made him speak his mind. He didn't like the idea of Moody passing out on the way to the Slytherin dungeon.

McGonagall tapped Harry on the shoulder and said, "Have you taken a look at yourself, Potter?" She turned to Moody and gave him a long appraising look as well. "I think both of you had better get to the infirmary. Poppy will take care of you. I'll take the Slytherins safely back to their house." Without waiting for protests, she motioned to the Slytherins. The group left, heading down the stairs toward the dungeon.

The Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors were leaving, led by their prefects. Ron and Hermione were with their group, of course, but as his eyes scanned the crowd, Harry couldn't see any sign of Ginny.

Hermione saw him looking worried and called over, "She's in the infirmary helping Madam Pomfrey." A group of first years were sticking close to her side. They moved as one with her as she walked over to look at Harry's arm. "You'd better hurry down to the infirmary yourself."

He smiled at her, "Thanks, Hermione." To the crowd around her he said, "Stay close. Her Patronus is a giant sea animal."

Soon he was face to face with Ginny in the infirmary. She gasped at the sight of his tattered and bloody sleeve. After calling out to Madam Pomfrey, she said, "Why didn't you tell me you were hurt? I would have come to find you." Harry was relieved to see her, safe and sound with her arms full of blankets. He let her concern wash over him.

Madam Pomfrey fussed over both of the new patients, sending Ginny to the store cupboard for bandages and potions. She turned her full attention on Harry and said, "Looks like a wild animal took a piece out of your arm, Potter."

Harry shrugged although his arm was throbbing with pain. Pointing at the figure of Professor Snape resting in a bed on the other side of the room, Harry asked, "Will he be all right?"

Madam Pomfrey said, "I gave him a Dreamless Sleep Potion before the excitement began. He should be all right after he's had a chance to rest."

Professor Dumbledore joined them silently with Fawkes riding on his shoulder. "So you found Professor Moody, Harry. Mission accomplished. I've checked the castle wards. Looks like everything is under control. We'll search the rest of the castle tonight, just to be sure."

While Moody explained what had happened in the Astronomy Tower, the Headmaster listened, as calm as could be. Dragons on the roof, a Lethifold in the dungeon -- nothing seemed to faze him. Dumbledore listened to their story, then quietly excused himself.

Madam Pomfrey made little tsking noises as Moody told her it was a Hebridean Black dragon that had knocked him out, then gashed Harry's arm. "It wasn't as large as some, although it was certainly big enough to do plenty of damage. There were two of them. Maybe someone should warn Hagrid." She cleaned and healed Harry's wound in with a series of quickly uttered charms, still shaking her head over the very idea that the terrifying beasts were on Hogwart's grounds.

"Warn Hagrid! He'll probably want to throw them a party," Harry said with a grin, watching his arm closely as the last healing charm worked its magic.

Madam Pomfrey had turned her attention to Professor Moody who was grumbling about fussy old women. Casting a look that silenced the old Auror, she ran her wand over him with a diagnostic spell.

Ginny silently handed Harry two Potion bottles, which he drank despite their foul taste. Then he stood up and said cheerfully, "Thanks for all your help. Guess I'll be going now. Sweet dreams, Professor Moody. I'm glad you're feeling better."

He took a few steps away from the infirmary beds. Then he turned to Ginny and asked, "Can I walk you back to Gryffindor Tower or do you need to stay here and help?"

Madam Pomfrey scowled at him. "You're not going anywhere Potter. You've lost a lot of blood. You'll have to stay here for the night to give the Blood Replenishing Potion a chance to work. "

"Please…you don't need to worry. The Potion will work just as well no matter where I sleep…and I'll sleep better in my own bed. I feel all right…and your Healing Charm worked perfectly." Harry didn't want to spend a sleepless night in the infirmary with Snape and Moody snoring nearby. "Besides, Ginny shouldn't walk through the castle by herself tonight. It isn't safe!"

Madam Pomfrey gave Harry and Ginny an appraising look. They both looked innocently back at her. Potter was right; no one should walk around alone tonight. "All right…I guess you'll do fine. Mind you keep an eye on him, Miss Weasley. Any sign that he feels faint — you know what to do."

When they were alone in the corridor, Harry took her hand and said, "Madam Pomfrey has a lot of faith in you, Gin." Most of the matron's assistants were sixth and seventh years.

"I told Professor Flitwick that I might want to become a healer after Hogwarts and he put in a good word for me." She blushed prettily at the look Harry was giving her.

"You've earned the chance, Ginny. You're better at Charms than…even Hermione, I think." Although his best friend always excelled at Charms, it was more a matter of careful study, than the natural skill that Ginny seemed to possess. Looking over at the pretty red head, he smiled and said, "I think I'm feeling a little faint."

She gave him a skeptical look and said, "Sure, Harry…Maybe you just want to know what I'll do if you pass out?"

"Madam Pomfrey said that you'd know!"

A healthy blush covered Harry's cheeks. He looked around for a moment, then pulled her behind a statue of Deirdre the Sorrowful. Leaning against the stone wall, he ran his hands down her arms and said, "Maybe you'd better check me over more carefully."

"So you want to play healer, Harry?" Ginny smirked at him, but didn't step away.

"Something like that," he said as he raised her hands up to his chest. "Can you feel my heart beating?" Seeing her nod, he added, "That's a start." Then he gently placed his lips against hers, marveling at how soft they were.

With her hands on his chest, Ginny could feel Harry's heart rate increase, even through his shirt. Moving her hands up around his neck, she melted into his touch, molding herself to his slim frame. Harry let out a small moan and deepened the kiss.

Ginny's head began to spin. The world seemed out of focus and off balance. She was drowning in a host of feelings that were new to her, as Harry trailed light butterfly soft kisses along her jawline toward her ear.

The kisses stopped and Harry held her close, holding her head against his shoulder, with his hand resting in her hair. She listened to his heart rate slow down as the world became more focused. "You're not going to faint, are you?" he asked, still keeping her close.

"If I am, it's your fault." She looked up into his smiling green eyes. "It's been a heart stopping night. What girl wouldn't worry with a boyfriend who likes to run off and fight with dragons?"

"Boyfriend?" Harry grinned. While they'd been meeting in secret for weeks, neither of them had been bold enough to put any labels on what they had together.

Frowning slightly, Ginny said, "What would you call yourself then?"

"Oh, I like the sound of boyfriend…makes it sound like we plan to be together." His hand cupped her cheek, forcing her to look up at him. He saw caring and uncertainty in her eyes. Running his thumb along her lower lip, he said, "I want us to have a future together. That's the thought that helps me think and plan. But is it what you want…someday?"

She smiled at him, her brown eyes shining. "Yes, of course it is, Harry…someday we'll have a chance to be together without any worries." She nestled her head back against him.

Keeping her close, Harry added, "We'll walk down the street without worrying about Death Eaters…"

"or dragons…"

"or older brothers…" Harry kissed the top of her head. "Someday. We can be together and there won't be anything to stop us." Tomorrow someone could sort out why two dragons appeared on the roof and how a dangerous Lethifold had found its way into the Potions classroom. Tonight, they both smiled as they carved a moment out of an otherwise frightful day to envision a better future for themselves.

The following day, Hagrid gathered together some of the older Care of Magical Creatures students, hoping they could help capture the dragons that had appeared the night before. "All right, there. Searching the Forbidden Forest is no picnic. You all need to pay attention to yer' surroundin's. The centaurs aren't the only unfriendly creatures you might encounter."

Terry Boot stepped forward and asked, "There must be fifteen students here. How do you expect us to capture two dragons?"

Hagrid gathered his pack and pink umbrella together. Looking at the assembled students, he said, "If we can just find the dragons, we'll let the trained Dragon Masters take over. They're already searchin'. We're 'ere to be fifteen extra pairs of eyes…so don't go trying anything foolish. It'll take the whole team of trained adult wizards to stun a full grown dragon…and there are two of 'em."

Seeing the worried look on Terry's face, Hagrid said, "Listen…if ya' catch sight of the dragons, send up green sparks. If ya' get into some other kind of difficulty, send up red sparks. We'll be there quick as we can."

Draco Malfoy grumbled, "What's the point of this? Isn't this a job for the Dragon Masters? Students shouldn't be out here. Besides those dragons were probably a figment of Potter's overactive imagination. He always has to be the center of attention. That half breed Hagrid would believe anything he said." The two other Slytherins, both seventh years that Harry didn't know, nodded their agreement with Malfoy.

Ignoring Draco's grumbling, Harry said loudly, "I'm ready, Professor. Who's with me?" Everyone's hand went up except Malfoy and his friends.

Hagrid smiled, and said, "Choose your partners and we'll begin…" Turning to the three scowling Slytherin's he said, "Maybe you three ought to stay here…don't feel bad, the Forest can be frightening to many young 'uns." He turned his back on them and moved off.

Harry partnered with Neville and Terry who were standing near him. As they began walking into the woods, Harry noticed Malfoy and the others trailing behind unhappily.

Tugging on Harry's arm, Neville said, "Maybe we should mark our way so we don't get lost."

"We could turn the leaves blue as we pass a bush or tree. The Coloring Charm should last long enough to find our way back." Terry suggested.

Harry said, "Good idea. We can also use this one, too." He put his wand on the palm of his hand and said, "_Point Me East!"_ His wand spun around until it pointed east. "We can use the same spell west as we leave."

The three traveled in silence for half an hour. The only magical creatures they encountered were some bowtruckles who shook their fists at them when they turned their tree blue and a group of fairies hovering over a small pond. The forest was beautiful. Red and gold leaves were still clinging to the branches.

Although relieved that there was no sign of the centaurs, Harry was sure that the quiet of the forest masked a multitude of secrets. He wondered if they were being watched. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to charm the leaves blue to mark their way.

Suddenly an ordinary deer crashed through the brush, followed by a fawn young enough to still have spots on its back. They seemed startled. After giving the boys a good stare, the two disappeared quickly into the trees.

From the direction that the deer had come from, a stream of green and red sparks flew above the trees. "C'mon!" shouted Harry. The three of them took off running in the direction of the sparks. As they drew closer to the sparks, they heard a roar. Ernie MacMillan's group was high up in a tree shooting off green and red sparks with their wands. In the distance they heard another roar.

As a second dragon's roar rang out, one of the Hufflepuff's in the tree called down. "The dragons are close! We can see them from up here. One of them isn't moving…but at least they aren't breathing fire!"

Neville answered, "Keep signaling! Hagrid can't be far away."

"What shall we do?" Terry asked, glad that they were still hidden from view. Maybe their best option was to join the Hufflepuffs in the tree.

Before anyone could answer, more students joined them, asking questions all at once. "Is it the dragons? Did you see something?" and "We're those your sparks?"

Motioning to everyone to stay quiet, Harry pointed upwards to the group in the tree. They nodded knowingly. Just as they quieted, Malfoy's group came crashing through the brush. They were walking slowly as if they were out for a Sunday stroll.

Malfoy shouted, "Of course, we find the brave Gryffindors and their friends…all huddled together sending up the help signal. What a bunch of girls…did one of you see a mouse?"

Terry Boot put a hand on her arm to stop Hannah Abbott from hexing Malfoy. Those were her Hufflepuff friends up in the tree. Before any of them could sort out their differences, another roar shook the forest floor. This one was closer.

Wishing Hagrid would appear and tell them what to do, Harry asked the boys in the tree, "How far away are they?" Another roar was his answer. This time, they could feel heat and hear the crackle of underbrush lighting on fire. Malfoy and the Slytherins fled.

Harry turned and faced the heat. He concentrated on the bushes in front of them. He was focusing so hard on their dilemma that he didn't notice the surge of strength as the tiny rubies around his neck began to glow underneath his shirt.

"What now?" asked Neville. He aimed his wand at the students in the tree, wondering if he should try to levitate them down.

Hannah Abbott shouted, "Climb down, Ernie!"

Just as the next blast of heat came their way, Harry remembered the spell Moody had used on the roof. "_Protego Inferno!_" he shouted. A pulse went out from Harry, radiating around the students and beating back the wave of heat. As one of the dragons burst through the bushes, drawing close to the students, the strength of the spell intensified. A bright light seemed to appear, encircling them. Some students moved instinctively closer to Harry.

The dragon stopped in its tracks, looking directly at the group of students. Everyone stood their ground although several gasps and shudders could be heard. Then an odd thing happened. The animal crouched down in front of them and laid its head on its front legs as though it was bowing. For a brief moment, the dragon's purple eyes, half closed, looked sleepily into Harry's.

The moment was gone as Hagrid finally arrived with the group of Dragon Masters. They immediately took charge of the subdued dragon. Ernie MacMillan descended from the tree and into the arms of a very relieved Hannah Abbott.

Soon the other dragon was discovered a few hundred feet away, hiding in a small cave. His leg had been injured, presumably when he fell against the Astronomy Tower. Although even an injured dragon had some pretty good defenses, the female dragon that the students had located was probably trying to shield him from intruders.

As the students left the Forbidden Forest, everyone congratulated each other. Except for the Slytherins, they had faced a powerful dragon and walked away unharmed. Harry smiled at them. He agreed that they had all done well.

As they walked slowly across the lawn, the late afternoon sun lit the gold and red leaves of the trees. Even the cold castle walls seem to take on a warm glow. Harry grew silent while the excited chatter of his classmates surrounded him.

The experience with the dragon had been unlike any he'd had before. He had felt the undeniably strong protective power of the slim gold band around his neck. Walking along, he wondered which Potter ancestor had worn the torque. Had they felt the same as he did today?

He resolved to redouble his efforts to find out what the other items could do. This was his birthright, a link to his family, but now it was something more. With this to help him, maybe he could find the power to defeat the evil facing him. He could have the future he hoped to have. With that surge of power, he'd felt a surge of hope.

To Be Continued…

Notes to reviewers:

Cicatriz: Thanks for all your comments! I'm glad you find that Ron and Hermione role reversal thing believable. Of course, she's still as smart as ever. She just can't think straight around Ron.

athenakitty: Good questions! Harry tries to keep fit for fencing. Ginny is the Queen of Pranks in this story. Draco was hoisted by his own petard. Harry will be getting more detentions. And a couple of face-offs are planned. Thanks for writing!

Lourdes: Sap and fluff! That's exactly what it is. Of course, there are no millions involved so your reviews mean that much more. Thanks!

DaBear: Yes, he did, the arrogant little ferret. At least it backfired. As for killing him — let's torture him first! Thanks for writing!

Nightwing 509: Thanks for reviewing! Sorry it took so long to update. I'll be able to write faster in a couple more weeks.

Gryphonmistress: I like all of your ideas! I do see Harry as a brooding, mysterious sort of guy. He has so much on his mind, especially for a sixteen year old. Thanks for reviewing!

lluvatar: Still love your pen name. Thanks for writing!

Lily: Now you know — Malfoy was just on something, not truly in love. Harry and Ginny won't be able to stay undercover for much longer. At least not where Ron is concerned. Thanks for writing!

MindyLou: Thanks! I'll be able to write faster soon. Me June = free time! Thanks for writing!

Wytil: I'll work on the paranoia thing. Thanks for reviewing!

I'm not the weakest link: Thanks!

PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: Glad to hear from you again! I'm trying to write quickly, but it is a busy time of year for me. Thanks for your kind comments. I know Lupin may have been a little OOC, but I think those emotions would all be there. I do have another Harry / Lupin escapade in the storyboard, but it doesn't happen for a while.

Butler: Thanks for reviewing! Harry took his sweet time about making any moves on Ginny. Now they don't know how to tell Ron.

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	19. Return to Myrddin's Den

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Notes to reviewers are at the end of the story. I am very interested in what people have to say. Thanks to everyone for taking the time to read and review!

Chapter 19

Return to Myrddin's Den

The last day of November brought a snowstorm, blanketing the castle and grounds in white. After the excitement of Halloween, life at Hogwarts had settled into a familiar routine. Hufflepuff surprised everyone, including themselves, by beating Ravenclaw with a 120-point lead, putting Gryffindor in second place for the Quidditch Cup. Neville Longbottom spent a week in the infirmary after saving Robbie Johnson from a rampaging Man-Eating Snapdragon after Robbie accidentally left the greenhouse door open. Otherwise, the month of November had been relatively calm.

Even caring for the captured dragons, while exciting in the beginning, had settled into a routine. The Dragon Masters insisted that the creatures needed to be cared for at Hogwarts until the injured dragon improved. Then they would be transported to a dragon reserve in the Hebrides. Until they could leave, the advanced Magical Creatures students were enlisted to help care for them. Hagrid thought it was a wonderful opportunity.

Naturally Harry often had the job of helping to control the dragons so the other handlers could get close enough to do their work. Everyone had seen the dragon bow to Harry on Halloween night.

The head of the Dragon Master team was an older wizard with long gray hair and a face wrinkled from a lifetime of outdoor living named Darin MacFusty. When they first met, he'd advised Harry to think about Dragon taming as a career.

Today, Harry and he were checking the wards that had been set around the paddock, making sure there were no gaps. The dragon enclosure was almost a mile across so their task took most of the afternoon.

One of the dragons followed their progress. Behind them, the dragon stretched out her batlike wings, but didn't fly. The black scales covering her body stood out starkly against the backdrop of the white field of snow. Her purple eyes watched Harry steadily as he worked alongside old Mr. MacFusty.

With the two of them working, they finished early. As they walked toward the exit, the older wizard explained, "Of course, a dragon ordinarily needs a great deal more space to maneuver. We'll just keep these two confined until the leg on that one heals. Keeping them stunned is only a temporary solution. There's no such thing as taming a dragon although I have to say, you and your necklace come close."

Harry cringed at the word necklace. "It's a torque, sir…an ancient Celtic torque."

"Suit yourself," Darin said with a face that said he didn't believe it. "Anyway, I've never heard of anyone being able to tame a dragon — except maybe Merlin. He was said to be the master of all beasts. Even the legendary Irish Dragon Riders were said to use potions and stunners."

Ignoring the Merlin comment, Harry said, "I've never heard of anyone actually riding a dragon." Harry knew there was a lot to learn about the magical world, but he was puzzled why no one ever mentioned dragon riding. Surely Charlie would have told him.

"The Irish Dragon Riders are just a story…a myth. I've never known of anyone really riding one, especially a Hebridean Black." The two of them looked back over their shoulder at the beast. Her scales were rough and a row of razor sharp ridges covered her spine.

The uninjured female dragon still hadn't taken her eyes off of Harry. The ground shook as she followed the two men. Her lumbering gait was not nearly as graceful as her wings spread in flight.

Harry asked, "Has she been stunned today?" He was a little nervous that the huge beast never took her eyes off him.

"What are you worried about? I told you, I've never seen a dragon follow someone around…" MacFusty shook his head and laughed robustly. "For sure…she's been stunned or I wouldn't be in the paddock…and she's been given a couple of Potions, one to keep the fire out and another to keep her calm. Her brother doesn't move much with that broken leg, but she seems to want to keep us company. I think she'll stay calm, but… all right…maybe we should watch her more carefully. It's not smart to turn your back on such a wild beast."

As he made this last comment, they reached the end of the enclosure. Harry looked into the dragon's eyes. He sort of felt sorry for her. This wasn't the life she was meant to lead, caged and too messed up on potions to breathe fire. "What brought the dragons to Hogwarts, Sir?" Harry asked.

"Ah…that's the real mystery. Most of these beauties stay in the reserve -- plenty of deer and no one to get in their way. Maybe…Oh, never mind. I really have no clue why these two showed up here." The older man looked at Harry carefully.

"Could someone have brought them here?" Harry persisted.

Clearing his throat, MacFusty said, "Could be a trained Dragon Handler brought them here…These two are pretty young, not fully grown, so that would make it easier…But why would anyone bother?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders and walked through the gate. As the gate shut behind him, he heard a roar. Turning around, he saw the dragon lift her wings in flight. She dipped her head toward the ground briefly then gracefully turned away. Moving her great black wings in a smooth rhythm she flew toward the other end of the paddock. Harry watched in awe then said goodbye to Mr. MacFusty again.

Forgetting all about the dragons as he walked back to the castle, Harry was just glad he'd finished early. It was Friday. If he hurried, he could spend some time doing homework in the library before his fencing lesson. He knew Ginny was already there.

Arriving slightly out of breath, he spotted Ginny right away. She was bent over a book with her shining red hair completely hiding her face. Harry's heart was beating faster at the sight. She hadn't noticed him yet. He made himself invisible and walked stealthily up to the table. Someone had left the chair pulled out just enough for him to sit down across from her without making a sound.

Ginny's brow furrowed in thought. She lifted her head and looked around. Then asked, "Where are you, Harry?"

His grinning face appeared across from her as he removed the Disillusionment Charm. "How did you know I was here?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" she answered, giving him a small smile. "A girl has to have some secrets."

"Fair enough," he answered, looking around. They were alone near the restricted section of the library, blocked by bookshelves. He reached across the table and took both her hands in his, giving her a look that made her feel very grown up and beautiful. He turned her hands over and examined them.

"I thought you'd given up Divination," Ginny said, smiling.

"Shh…I'm only pretending to read your palms so I can hold your hands…I've missed you today."

Her answer was a soft giggle. Harry thought it was amazing how Ginny's giggle sounded so perfect when other girl's giggling just annoyed him. Little moments like this sustained him all day. Here was his chance to be with her.

Hermione came crashing into the library, causing a stir by asking students if they'd seen Harry Potter. Madam Pince gasped when she saw who was making the disturbance. It didn't take Hermione long to find Ginny and Harry sitting at a table, quietly doing their homework. "I found something!" she announced — still too excited to whisper.

"What is it?" Harry asked, curious about what might get Hermione so worked up.

Ginny set aside the small white lily in her hand and gave her full attention to Hermione who sat down with a satisfied sigh and dropped the ancient book she was carrying onto the table with a loud thud.

Flipping carefully through the crumbly parchment pages, Hermione leaned forward conspiratorially. Then she said, "Listen to this… 'Historians have discounted the story that Merlin escaped Niniane's trap assisted by a young wizard who was powerful and pure of heart. This story claimed that a young local named Owain broke the sealed chamber by blasting a hole in solid rock thus freeing a grateful Merlin. The venerable wizard left his prison and lived the rest of his days in the wilds of Scotland where he lived in an enchanted forest — never to be seen again.'" She stopped reading to see their reaction.

Ginny asked, "What does that prove, Hermione? If it's a story that no one believes."

"Don't you see? It fits the information in Harry's Torch book. And it may explain a Potter connection to the Merlin story."

Harry looked thoughtful. "I thought we decided that most people believed Merlin was imprisoned in air instead of a cave. Isn't that why we decided not to go back to that cave and investigate the possibility of trapping Death Eaters there?"

"Well…there are lots of reasons why we decided not to try to trap Death Eaters." Hermione had been relieved when she persuaded Ron to abandon the idea of returning to the cave where Lupin had been found.

"If this Owain was Harry's ancestor, wouldn't that make his name Owain Potter? Doesn't really roll off the tongue, does it?" Ginny smiled at the thought.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "This could be an important piece of the puzzle. It has all the elements. A cave in Wales? A forest in Scotland?" She couldn't believe they didn't see the connection. "If we go back to the theory that the cave you were in last summer is, in fact, the cave where Merlin was trapped. And we have a map which shows the location of an enchanted forest in Scotland…"

Harry was skeptical. "We've found those elements in all the stories. This is Britain. There are old castles and fairy tales everywhere…full of enchanted caves and forests. And isn't it too convenient that Merlin was never seen again after he supposedly was released to live in this Scottish forest? I mean, there would be no way to prove a story like that."

"Nothing is certain. This is a working theory." She bit her lip while she thought for a moment. "Maybe the Potter ancestor was the young wizard who helped Merlin. If he never had children of his own, then you can't be descended from Merlin…but you could be descended from someone who knew him — who would be connected to that cave. This covers some of the same particulars as your book. Of course it is really difficult to say anything for sure."

Harry nodded. "Maybe it is time to go back to Wales and investigate that cave further."

Both girls looked at him sharply. Before they could protest, Harry held up a hand, and said, "Not to figure out how to trap Death Eaters…just to get a better look around."

Hermione looked relieved and looked back at the pages of the book. Ginny never took her eyes off Harry's face as he continued to explain. "Think about it…that cave definitely has something to do with the Potter box. There is a picture of the area carved on the lid. I need to find out all I can…especially now that I know what the torque can do. The cave…it seems like the place to start. Maybe there's something else there."

Harry would have liked to have a better look around last summer. He'd day dreamed about exploring the cave further and finding other treasures stored there. Now that he knew the torque necklace was a powerful magical object, he wanted to find out all he could about the other items in the box.

Of course, the reality was that the cave seemed pretty picked over when he was there looking for Lupin. He could see clearly that there was nothing in the smaller chamber where Lupin had been trapped, but the larger outer chamber had several large ceramic jars. But those that weren't broken had probably been picked through long ago. It's not like there was a lock on the front door.

Seeing the dreamy look in Harry's eye, Hermione said, "No way are you going back there! We've been over this before! Didn't you say that Death Eaters were moving in as you and the Aurors were moving out with Lupin? How can you even think that it might be a good idea to go back?"

He knew she was right. She usually was. It was just a place that captured his imagination. He told her so. "I'd forgotten that someone was coming as we were leaving. Anyway, I never said they were Death Eaters. It was probably just someone carrying a torch."

Ginny had listened carefully to their conversation. "We could go tomorrow. It's Saturday. Everyone will think we're practicing Quidditch or working in the library. No one will know. You can cover for us, Hermione."

Seeing that they were all gaping at her open-mouthed, Ginny continued, "Harry's old enough to do whatever he wants. No one except the people in the Order knew he was ever in that cave. Why would Death Eaters stay there? We can be back by dinner without anyone knowing…If it might help, we should try." Ginny never liked giving up. It was one of the things that Harry really liked about her.

"Gin's right, you know. I could be back by dinner. You could cover for me." Harry had felt the power increase over the summer. Now he knew how the torque protection worked. He couldn't completely explain why, but he was feeling more confident than he ever had in his life. He wasn't afraid of the cave. Seeing Hermione's look of dismay, he said, "I can make myself invisible while I explore. I won't take any unnecessary risks."

"I'll go with you," said Ginny. "I can wear your cloak."

Hermione shook her head. "Neither of you are thinking straight. It's just stupid to take risks like this."

Harry thought, 'She's determined to keep me safe at all costs, just like Dumbledore.' He tried to control the anger he felt rising up within him. It was just this kind of coddling that kept the truth from him last year. He couldn't stand being handled and manipulated.

From the look on his face and the crackle in the air, Hermione knew Harry wasn't persuaded so she played the guilt card. "Harry, think of all the sacrifices people have made to keep you safe. You can't take the chance that you'll be walking into a Death Eater trap." She could tell that her words had hurt him. She knew the guilt he felt over all the people he had lost: his family, Cedric, Sirius.

There was a loud snap in the air as Harry ran his hands through his hair, and looked away. After a full minute of silence, he looked back, first at Ginny and then at Hermione. He sighed and said, "I can't live my life that way, Hermione. People didn't make those sacrifices so I could cower somewhere safe for all of my days." His eyes were bright as he explained how he felt. "Everyone's life involves taking risks. The world is not a safe place. Any number of things could hurt us, even here at Hogwarts."

Both girls knew he was telling them something he deeply felt. "Harry, I…" Hermione began. She looked down, avoiding his eyes. She was sorry that she'd tried to guilt him in to doing what she wanted.

Ginny looked straight at him with a gentle smile and said, "It's all right. You won't take any unnecessary risks." She trusted him. She believed in him. He smiled back at her.

"Thanks, Ginny." He looked down at his hands, and said gently, "I'd feel better about it if you'd stay here and help cover for me. I don't want to lead you into danger. If something happened because of me…."

Her eyes flashed dangerously. "I don't take orders from anyone, Harry. So you're saying that it's all right for you to take risks, but not for me…that you don't you trust me to take care of myself." Her chin went up in defiance.

Admiring the way her cheeks flushed when she was angry, Harry just stared at her for a moment as though he was thinking it over. Then he said quietly, "Please, Ginny." If they'd been alone, he might have said a lot more.

Hermione was sorry she'd brought up the cave. "I still don't think either of you should go. There may be nothing there. Oh…I shouldn't have said anything. At least tell Dumbledore your plan. Maybe he could send Aurors with you. Or Fawkes could be there. How are you even going to get there without Fawkes or a Portkey?" She thought she'd found the flaw in their plan.

Harry looked at his friend, reminding himself that she was only trying to help. "Hermione. I know how to make a Portkey. Remember...I taught you how to make one. And I know how to Apparate. I've been training in anything that will help keep me safe from another kidnapping attempt. If you had an evil wizard trying to kill you, you'd learn these things, too. In fact, both of you should learn how to Apparate as soon as possible. It may save your life someday."

"Making an unauthorized Portkey is still illegal. So is Apparating without a license. What are you thinking? Some people at the Ministry of Magic would still like a reason to lock you up." Hermione was shocked that he could be so casual about violating wizarding laws.

He held up his hand showing her the faint scar that read - I will not tell lies. "I have a permanent reminder of what the Ministry thinks of me, Hermione. Again, I'm not going to live my life by their rules. If I do, I might not make it to my next birthday. And I intend to make it to many birthdays to come."

Although Cornelius Fudge had decided to publicly acknowledge that Harry and Dumbledore were telling the truth about Voldemort's return, Harry didn't trust him. After all, Fudge was the one who sent Umbridge to Hogwarts the year before. And he still hadn't publicly acknowledged Sirius' innocence. Pettigrew's trial had been held in secret for "National Security" reasons and Fudge still refused to acknowledge that Wormtail had confessed to all of Sirius' crimes.

Seeing that Hermione was unconvinced, he said, "Have a little faith in me. I'm not reckless."

Ginny stretched across the table and covered one of his hands with both of hers. "And you should have a little faith in me, Harry." She was looking at him, trustingly, believing that he would come around.

Harry nodded his understanding. It seemed so clear while they were sitting here in the safety of the school library. She was a strong person in her own right. He couldn't wrap her in a safety just for his own piece of mind. She'd end up resenting him in the same way that he'd resented Dumbledore during his fifth year.

"Ron will kill you if you take Ginny into danger. After the attack on the Burrow last summer, you promised to keep her safe." Hermione wished Ron were here right now.

Without taking his eyes of Ginny, Harry said, "I'll keep my promise. She can wear my Invisibility Cloak and hold the Portkey in her pocket." He squeezed her hand gently.

Ginny smiled broadly. He really did understand that she wasn't the stay at home type. He was taking her with him.

"What about Dumbledore? Will you please tell him?" Hermione asked.

"He'd just say no," Harry said, shaking his head. Dumbledore hadn't told him anything in a month. Even Lupin had become more secretive, only telling him vague stories about the Order. If they weren't going to trust Harry with their business, then he wasn't going to trust them with his.

Ginny said, "We won't be gone long, maybe an hour. Won't you help us, Hermione?"

"We'll need your help, Hermione," Harry said.

With both of them pleading, she couldn't say no. "Only if Ron agrees." She was sure Ron would be more persuasive. "Let's meet in your dorm after dinner and discuss it."

"All right. We'll talk to Ron about it first." Harry secretly hoped that Ron would stop Ginny from going. Despite his head knowing he shouldn't tell her what to do, in his heart he would still like her safe. Looking at the clock against the wall, Harry excused himself to go to fencing.

Ron had been working on a Potions project all afternoon. As he joined Hermione and Harry in the Great Hall for dinner, he smelled like cabbage. "What is that incredible smell?" Harry asked.

Ron groaned and said, "Ernie MacMillan and I were working on our Memory Potion. I think the fire underneath was too high and it boiled when it was supposed to simmer. Anyway, it smelled foul."

"You smell like my grandmother's boiled dinner," said Seamus, laughing.

"Maybe I should've showered." Ron was looking sheepish. He hadn't realized the smell was so strong.

"You remind me of Mrs. Figg's house, but without the cat hair." Harry clapped Ron on the back and continued, "Food first, Ron. You don't want to shower on an empty stomach." He pushed the steak and kidney pie toward his friend. He wanted him in a good mood when he told him of his plan. "If you have time after dinner, could you meet me in our dorm? Ginny and Hermione are coming, too. We want to ask you about something." He tried to sound casual about his request.

"Arggus Icn mbbeshlldd shrr fsst." Ron replied, food spitting from the corners of his mouth.

Harry nodded and made a face. "Yeah…I guess you should shower first."

"Why do you have to talk with your mouth full?" Hermione said, shaking her head.

"I'm sorry, 'Mione. I couldn't wait to see your pretty face. I missed you all afternoon." He wasn't sure if sweet-talking her would work since he smelled of cabbage.

She began to blush and said, "We'll talk…after you shower."

Harry left before they could get started. Ron's idea of flirting wasn't always Harry's idea of fun.

Watching Harry's retreating back, Ron leaned close to Hermione and whispered, "This must be it! Finally, Harry's going to ask me if he can start dating my sister. And it's about time, too. They're always together." He grinned broadly.

Hermione wrinkled her nose, but didn't pull away. "Ron, that's not it. They have something very different to discuss with you…and I should warn you that you may not like it."

Not liking the sound of that, Ron said, "If you know what it is, why not tell me?"

"Not in the Great Hall, Ron. Someone might hear us and it wouldn't do for this to get out." Hermione looked around suspiciously.

"Fine! I just want to know…I mean…she's my sister! I'm supposed to look out for her." Hermione just shrugged so Ron insisted on packing up some dinner and hurrying upstairs. Too many worst case scenarios were playing through his mind for him to wait patiently.

In the end, Ron was so relieved that the subject of their secret meeting was planning an adventure that he readily agreed. But he did insist that Ginny stay behind and help Hermione cover their absence. He would accompany Harry instead.

While she wasn't happy about it, Ginny finally agreed. Ron threatened to owl home if she insisted on going with Harry. She realized that the boys would be safer if they could contact someone at Hogwarts in case of trouble.

Ron and Harry planned to explore the cave for one hour. Add in the travel time, they might be gone for about two. They didn't really know what to expect, but they hoped they'd thought of everything.

At Hermione's insistence, Harry had brought the sword he'd found in the cave, transfigured into a cloak pin. She thought it might be useful.

Dressed in warm clothes and carrying supplies in their rucksacks, the two boys headed out in silence. No one was in the hall near the statue of the one-eyed witch. Uttering "_Dissendium!" _they slid down into the tunnel and walked silently until they were almost to Honeydukes.

Each boy grabbed one end of the chocolate bar wrapper. Harry placed the Disillusionment Spell on both of them, then activated the Portkey. They arrived without incident in a clearing near the cave.

The plan was simple. They would investigate the main cavern and the room where Lupin had been trapped. Harry had insisted that Ron keep the Portkey in his pocket and bring the Invisibility Cloak. Ron was so tall, his feet always showed beneath the cloak, but he would only need it if they ran into trouble. They didn't expect to see anyone.

The oncoming winter had robbed the hills of their greenery, but the area was beautiful. On the ground were the remnants of an old snowstorm that hadn't quite melted away. This was actually a stroke of luck. The field of snow was untouched. There were no human footprints anywhere.

They had agreed ahead of time to speak as little as possible. Ron followed Harry's footprints in the snow. Silently, they moved toward the cave. Two birds flew out of the bush as they approached the entrance. Wondering if that had any significance, Harry took off the Disillusionment Charms so they could see each other. Then he motioned to Ron to follow him through the brush. They passed the old stone statue and basin full of debris. Pulling aside bare branches, they entered the cave.

As before, the torches lit up as they walked into the main cavern. The light from the torches seemed to warm them and a sweet smell drifted through the air. The stone box in the middle of the room was closed and Harry wondered if it had closed when he left last summer.

He moved to the far wall where there were several large ceramic jars. Lifting one of them high he overturned it. Nothing but dirt fell out. Whatever the jar had once held, it was empty now. Shrugging, he repeated this with all of the jars. Nothing happened.

Ron was looking around the walls of the cave. He pointed to one of the torches to the left of the entrance. It was odd. While all the other torches gave off a yellow glow, this torch burned white. Picking it up out of its sconce, Ron examined it closely. Except for the color, it seemed to be the same as the others.

Harry walked over to his friend. He reached for the torch. As he took it in his hand, the wall behind Ron disappeared revealing an arched entryway into a dark passage. He pointed at it. "Look at that!" Harry said excitedly.

Turning around to face where Harry was pointing, Ron shrugged. "I don't see anything. What are you on about?" he asked.

"Stop kidding around. It's right behind you." Harry walked through the archway to show him, but Ron didn't follow. Turning around, Ron was looking genuinely surprised and maybe a little panicked. It looked like the torches in the main room had gone out. He called to him, but Ron didn't answer. Like a mime, Ron held his hands against an invisible wall and mouthed the word, "Harry!"

Harry walked back through the archway, carrying the torch. The room lit up again. "We don't have time to play games, Ron. Just hold my arm and follow me through. If you really can't see it, I'll guide you through."

"I tried to follow, but the cave wall just swallowed you up. I couldn't get through. And the torches went out." Ron seemed worried. They tried again with the same result. Now they weren't sure what to do. They discussed their options briefly. This could be some kind of trap, but it didn't seem like it since Harry could walk back and forth. With less than an hour left, they needed to make a decision.

Harry finally said, "I'll go on alone and explore the next room. Maybe you should put on the Invisibility Cloak while you wait…in case you need to defend yourself. And…maybe you should sit down so the cloak covers all of you."

Ron reluctantly agreed. He remembered that there were no footprints outside in the snow, which meant no one, had been around here in days. It seemed likely that they were alone in the cave.

Moving through the archway with the white torch again, Harry took the time to look around. The dark passageway led to a beautiful room. The torchlight showed walls glistening with gold as though the whole room was covered with a spray of glitter. He set the white torch into an empty sconce. A harp and a flute lay on a table. A raised platform was covered with rugs and animal skins like it was some sort of bed.

Another table in the corner had scrolls strewn across it. Harry made straight for these. After all, he was really here hoping to find information. Picking one up, he began to read.

Suddenly a strong woman's voice said, "Who's there? How dare you go through those things!"

The teenager turned to see the ethereal figure of a beautiful woman. In life she'd had long red hair and wore a very revealing green silk gown. What harm could a ghost do?

As he turned to face her, she zoomed close to his face. Inches away, she said, "How is this possible? I'm amazed to see you. How have you managed this wizardry? You look so young."

He looked at his feet trying to avoid the raw emotion in her ghostly eyes. "I'm not sure what you mean, ma'am. Do I know you?" With that red hair maybe she was some distant relative of his mother's. She didn't look at all familiar.

She didn't speak. She just remained hovering close. Her eyes still searched his face, making him very uncomfortable.

Harry moved away from her and said, "I walked right into the cave. I didn't know anyone was here. Sorry to disturb. I'll just be going now." He started to set the scroll down where he found it. "Here are your things just as they were."

"But these are your things…" the ghost protested.

"My things! Why…?" Harry was confused. This ghost obviously thought she recognized him. Maybe someone who looked like him had used this room.

"Of course, they are your things, my darling. What's happened to you? Is it something to do with this?" She touched his scar.

Harry was shocked at the cold touch of her ghostly finger. It was so odd, having this beautiful ghost stroking him like a long lost lover. Finally he found his voice and asked, rather loudly, "Who are you?"

She smiled for first time and spoke. "I'm Niniane, the Lady of the Lake."

Harry answered, "Let's begin again. I'm Harry…Harry Potter. I'm sorry to disturb your cave, Niniane. Why would you think these are my things?"

"Oh…I thought you were someone else. I thought you were…Well, it doesn't matter. I can see now that I was wrong. Your eyes are green, not blue. This chamber belonged to a friend of mine. Anyway, he's long since passed on. I mistook you for him. I thought he was returning at last. Please take whatever you want, these things have been unused for a very long time. They mean nothing to me."

Thinking that she sure liked to talk, Harry asked, "How long have you been here by yourself? Do you ever have visitors?"

"No one has walked through the archway into this room in over one thousand years."

"Such a long time to be alone. Even for a ghost," Harry said, sympathetically. That explained why she was so talkative. "So I'm your first visitor?"

"I didn't say that. The locals sometimes come into the outer room, but they're mostly Muggles. Just last month a wizard was here."

"A wizard?" Harry prompted her.

"He was a either wizard or some kind of demon. His eyes burned red in his snakelike face. He asked me questions and threatened to cast a spell on me if I wouldn't answer. As if his magic could harm me now." She laughed eerily.

"Did he say why he was here?" Harry asked, forcing himself to stay calm. Obviously Voldemort had been in the cave, but that had been a month ago.

She stopped laughing. "He was searching for something, but he didn't say what. Perhaps he was just searching because this was Myrddin's cave. Because of his threats, I told him nothing and slipped back into this chamber. He's not the first. Others have come searching for the secrets to the ancient craft of Myrddin."

"Is that why you're here?" Harry asked. He was torn between thinking he and Ron should leave quickly and wanting more information from Niniane. He may never have another opportunity.

"I came here looking for someone, but he was gone." She seemed so sad.

"So you actually knew Myrddin? He was a friend of yours?"

She hesitated. Looking at Harry almost guiltily, she said, "You were a better friend though, weren't you."

Pitying this poor, lonely ghost, Harry said softly, "I'm not who you think I am. Remember…green eyes, not blue. And I never knew Myrddin. I've only been to this cave twice."

She came close and touched his face again, studying every feature and said, "Of course…you're alive. No one lives for thousands of years. I should have realized…But how did you get in here? Oh…what does it matter."

Harry looked at her sharply and asked, "So this person I look like, was he a relative of Myrddin…or maybe your relative?" Here was his chance to find out the whole truth. If only the ghost of Niniane could think straight for long enough to tell her story.

Looking surprised, she said, "Why do you keep asking about Myrddin? Myrddin had no family. They say his father was a demon. His mother was the only daughter of an old king. She never married. After Myrddin grew up and the old king died, she went to live in a convent. No…Myrddin had no family."

"But you knew him. What was he like?" Harry asked.

"He was a meddling old fool. Powerful, but old and wizened," she said, looking distraught.

"Is it true that he taught you everything that he knew?"

She answered sharply, "No! But he taught me enough, before he turned on me. I locked him away. He was going to…interfere in my life. I couldn't let that happen." She looked sad and pathetic. "Now I have no power and I'm the one who is locked away." She let out a wail that would put Moaning Myrtle to shame.

Realizing that his time was running out if Ron and he were going to sneak back unnoticed, Harry said, "I'll visit again…sometime." He'd never seen anyone look so sorrowful. "Would it be all right if I took these scrolls? I'd like to read them, but I have to go. I'll try to return soon…but today I have no more time."

She said, "Time…means nothing to me." Then she stretched out face down on the raised platform.

Working quickly, Harry shrunk the scrolls and put them all in his rucksack. The ghost did not respond to his goodbye. Taking the white torch, he went back through the archway to find Ron. Briefly explaining that Voldemort had been in the cave, the two of them retraced their steps to Hogwarts, reaching the one-eyed witch in record time.

As they were about to go through the statue, Ginny called Harry with the mirror. "Snape's in the hallway. They've been looking all over the school for you, Harry. Apparently Professor Lupin came to visit you. He's waiting in Dumbledore's office."

In the background, he could hear Hermione say, "The important thing is not to panic."

Looking at Ron, Harry said, "Hermione says we shouldn't panic, but they're searching the school for us."

Ginny said, "I told McGonagall that I thought you and Ron went out for a run."

Grateful for Ginny's quick thinking, Harry asked, "Can't you get Snape to follow you somewhere? Keep the mirror on so we can hear you. That way, we'll know when it's safe to appear. We'll say we've been out running."

Turning to Ron, Harry said, "We better look the part." They transfigured their robes into running clothes.

They could hear Ginny and Hermione talking to Snape who was suspicious that the girls obviously wanted him to leave the corridor. Then Ginny began to cry about her poor brother probably laying out by the lake somewhere with a twisted ankle and only Harry to help him. What could Snape do, except follow the girls down the staircase?

The boys hurried up to Gryffindor where Neville informed them that Dumbledore was looking for Harry. Ron left to shower. Harry changed into real running clothes and left for Dumbledore's office. First, he took a moment to lock the miniature scrolls into his wooden box. It didn't feel right to leave them sitting around the dormitory.

Harry was relieved to see Remus Lupin. It had been at least a week since they'd spoken. Judging from his reception in Dumbledore's office, everyone else in the room was relieved to see Harry. The room seemed quite full with McGonagall, Snape, Dumbledore and Lupin all waiting when he arrived.

Dumbledore looked straight at Harry and asked, "Where have you been? We've been searching the castle for an hour."

Throwing up the mental blocks necessary to keep the Headmaster out of his mind, Harry answered, "Ron and I went for a run. Turned out to be more of a walk and a chance to talk about stuff…Sorry to worry everyone." He heard someone, he thought it was McGonagall, release a breath slowly as though relieved to hear his simple explanation. Dumbledore just nodded.

Smiling at Remus Lupin, Harry said, "What about you? What brings you here?" gratefully drinking the cup of tea that Snape handed him.

"Do I need a reason to visit you?" Remus asked.

When he noticed Snape was looking at him rather smugly, Harry asked, "What is it, Professor? Something on your mind?" Harry half hoped to provoke Snape into one of his rude rants in front of the more reasonable adults in the room.

Snape sneered at him and said, "I've just noticed your gold necklace, Potter. What's next, earrings?"

Ignoring the intent to insult him, Harry said, "Oh this…" He touched the gold band and it reappeared in his hand as the original Celtic torque. "Maybe this will help you recognize it, Professor. It's a family heirloom." Harry changed it back to the thin gold band and put it back around his neck under his tee shirt.

Snape sat back in his chair and looked Harry up and down, taking in the trackies and trainers. He tried a different tack, "Where were you really, Potter? I didn't see you coming in from the lake."

"I really like to walk around the lake…sir," answered Harry, shrugging and sipping his tea. Then he turned to Lupin and asked, "What really brought you here?" He noticed the dark circles around Remus' eyes. "Is it your health? Or perhaps something to do with the Order?"

Casting his eyes toward the carpet, Remus answered by speaking to Dumbledore. "It's no use. Harry should know everything that's going on. We have to trust each other."

Professor Dumbledore said, "I've already told Harry everything there is to know about this subject. He knows we think there is someone giving away information about the Order. We aren't any closer to discovering who it is than we were a month ago."

Harry remembered Dumbledore telling him about the mole within the Order. That was before the Lethifold attack on Halloween night. "You think it's someone at Hogwarts…because of the attack on Halloween?" Almost involuntarily, he looked at Snape, thinking that maybe Snape was trying to gain Voldemort's trust by feeding him vital information. His mind cast around for other likely scenarios.

Dumbledore said, "It isn't Professor Snape. Or anyone else in this room — at least I'm certain that no one in this room would willingly give information away."

Catching on, Harry asked, "So you think that Voldemort might be reading my mind? That's what you were worried about last year. You think you can't trust me." Harry remembered being shut out of everything while he struggled with his Occlumency lessons.

Dumbledore asked, "Do you feel any sign of Voldemort's presence in your mind, Harry? If you no longer have nightmares or visions and your scar doesn't burn, I can't see how it could be your connection. Anyway the attack on Halloween night did not come from Voldemort. He could simply have summoned Professor Snape."

"If the Lethifold attack was meant for Severus," said Lupin.

"What's that supposed to mean? You think a Lethifold just made it into the dungeon by accident?" asked Harry, looking around at the unhappy faces of his professors.

Professor McGonagall said, "I think your guardian is suggesting that the Lethifold could have been put in the dungeon with another target in mind."

"Oh…" said Harry.

"You were the only other person in the Potions classroom, Harry. And we know you're a prime target for Death Eaters." Lupin looked worried. It suddenly occurred to him that Snape could have planted the Lethifold himself in an attempt to attack Harry.

Lupin shook off that wild thought as Harry answered, "That thing can't have been after me. No one could have known I'd even be there. I was supposed to be at my fencing lesson, but Rhys left early."

Dumbledore settled the discussion. "Assuming Professor Snape was the target, it seems likely that the motive was revenge. Perhaps some Death Eater found out that he has been playing a double role. If they believed that he betrayed them, they might want to attack. Voldemort's angry reaction, which we know about because of you, Harry, must mean that Professor Snape's duplicity has been discovered. His life is on the line now more than ever." Dumbledore watched Harry's reaction.

Harry just looked lost in thought. He finished his tea and set the cup down on the nearest table. "Could a student have let in a Lethifold, Professor?" His tongue felt thick.

"They would have had to alter the wards against Magical Creature intrusions," Dumbledore answered.

Harry was feeling drowsy and fuzzy headed. "What if they were told what to do by someone older and more skillful. Would a student be able to take down those wards?" Harry didn't want to suspect anyone he actually knew. The members of the Order seemed so committed to the fight against Voldemort, he couldn't believe any of them would be a traitor. There must be another explanation.

It was Dumbledore who answered again. "You could, Harry. But most students have no knowledge of complex wards, nor the power to disarm them. In any case, now is the time to be especially careful whom we trust. Whoever did this, they will show their hand soon enough." The headmaster's voice seemed to be coming from far away.

Harry's eyes glazed over. Dumbledore became concerned. He waved his hand in front of Harry's face. Looking at Harry's empty teacup, then back at Snape, he asked, "What did you give him, Severus?"

Snape shrugged and said with a sneer, "Nothing illegal…But now we can ask him whatever we want and he won't be able to deceive us."

"What are you talking about?" Lupin asked, sounding distressed.

Snape looked unrepentant. "Legilimency doesn't work on Harry any longer. He's hiding something. Of that I'm sure."

McGonagall said, "I can't believe you would do such a thing. He's just a boy, a growing boy." She was disgusted at the very idea that Snape had slipped Harry something in his tea.

Watching as Lupin and Dumbledore waved hands in front of Harry's glazed over expression, Snape said, "It's nothing lethal." He produced a wrapper from the pocket of his robes. His voice was dripping with sarcasm as he waved it in the air. "It's called Talking Truth Taffy, available for a mere seventeen knuts from Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. Let's not waste time. The effects don't last long."

Harry listened to their discussion feeling as though he was wrapped in a warm, soft blanket. Through the fog he heard Snape ask, "Where did you go this afternoon, Harry?"

He didn't want to answer, but he found himself replying, "I went for a walk with Ron."

"Where did you go on your walk?"

Again, he tried to stop himself from answering, but in spite of himself, he said, "Almost to Honeydukes…"

Remus said angrily, "There, see…are you happy, now? You've given him a truth drug only to find out that he and his friend snuck out to buy some candy. What's in this Truth Taffy?"

Snape handed Remus the bright wrapper that read, "Guaranteed Safe." Then he turned to Harry and asked, "Did you let a Lethifold loose in the dungeon on Halloween night, Potter?"

Harry whispered, "N…no…" Then his head fell back and his eyes closed. He began to snore.

Dumbledore stepped in between Snape and Harry. "Now stop this…it's not right. Severus. I'm disappointed in you. Harry may not like you, but he would never set a Lethifold on you. Where would he even get such an animal?"

"Harry was the last student in the Potions classroom before I was attacked…And he was…friendlier than he usually is. He's certainly the only student with the ability to take down the wards. It's all very suspicious." Snape sneered at Lupin.

Lupin was furious. "You're a bitter old man Snivellus, holding a grudge against a boy who never did you any harm. He saved your life that night. He and Albus pulled that Lethifold off your face, or you'd be dead right now. And this is how you pay him back. You're pathetic." Remus lifted Harry into his arms and said, "I'm taking him to Poppy. This interrogation is over. Severus…you had no right."

That ended their discussion of the traitor in their midst. Remus met Hermione and Ginny at the bottom of the stairs. The girls accompanied him to the infirmary, shocked that Snape would give Harry a truth drug.

Madam Pomfrey was just as shocked as everyone else to find that Harry was under the influence. Lupin described the scene in Dumbledore's office and thought the girls seemed oddly relieved when they found out that Harry and Ron had walked almost to Honeydukes.

After a firecall to Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, Madam Pomfrey announced that there was no antidote or counter potion. It seemed that one of the side effects was extreme drowsiness, but since the potion was only supposed to last for one hour, Harry could sleep it off in the infirmary and wake up by dinnertime. Unhappy as they were at this thought, his friends and guardian agreed to stay with him the whole time so no one could sneak in and talk to him in his vulnerable condition. They pulled up chairs around Harry's bed as he slept.

Settling in, Ginny decided to draw a picture of Harry while he slept. He was lying on his back in his rumpled running clothes. His untidy black hair fell back off his forehead showing his lightning bolt shaped scar. He looked younger in his sleep, but at least he was holding still while she drew.

"Do you have any bluebell petals?" Luna asked. "Powdered would do."

Ginny jumped at the sound, making a mark across her drawing. As she magically erased the mark, she looked up at her friend. She hadn't even noticed that Luna and Neville had joined them.

Ron asked, "Why do you need some bluebells, Luna?"

Luna seemed not to notice him for a moment as she looked at her fingernails. "I thought we could wake up Harry with some. It works on my pet goat every time."

Ron thought he might regret it, but he had to ask. "Why does your goat need help waking up? And how do you feed it bluebell petals in its sleep?"

Luna laughed. "You're so funny, Ronald. Who would feed bluebells to a goat? They'd be awake for weeks. Hahaha… You don't feed the petals to the goat, you spread them over her. And she only needs help waking up when she's been eating gooseberry fungus, otherwise she's a totally normal goat."

Neville seemed fascinated by her every word. "You must know everything about goats, Luna."

Hermione rolled her eyes while Ron squinted with his. "What's that on your lip, Neville? Ginny, hand him a tissue."

Neville turned red, "I…uh…I have a…" Ever since Seamus had shown up in September with a beard and a girlfriend, Neville had been trying to emulate him. Lately, he'd thought, maybe if he grew out his facial hair.

"Ron…" Hermione scolded him using his name and shook her head.

Ron protested, "What? I was just making conversation."

Luna didn't seem to follow what they were saying. She asked, "So do any of you have know where we could get some bluebells this time of year?"

"Thank you, Luna, but I don't think we need a goat remedy for Harry. He'll wake up on his own." Hermione was trying to be patient and polite, but inside she was amazed at just how clueless the Ravenclaw girl could be.

Neville answered. "We heard that Harry was unable to wake up from some potion he took. We just wanted to be sure that he was all right." Luna nodded.

"He should be waking up sometime soon." Hermione said with a smile. It was nice to see Harry's friends gather round. Pulling chairs close around Harry's bed, they settled in to wait.

Remus spent the time plotting what he would do to Snape when he had the chance. He was so caught up in his own thoughts, that he failed to notice the way Harry's friends were signaling each other. Hermione finally stood up and asked Ginny to run an errand to the library with her. Luna and Neville excused themselves as well, leaving Remus and Ron alone.

Ron broke the silence first, "I've been thinking about giving Harry some Truth Taffy for months. Glad I didn't now that I see he's allergic or something…Fred and George never mentioned that some people fell into a deep sleep when taking their product. I reckon' they should take this one off the market 'til they've run some more tests."

"Do you have some on you, Ron? Maybe we could offer old Snivellus some tea…" Remus wasn't about to just let this pass. Snape would pay.

"Professor!" Ron was shocked and pleased that Remus would speak so casually about Snape in front of him. He smiled and said, "We'll find some way…"

"You probably should finish that sentence here, Ron. After all, he's still your Potions Master."

"A boy can dream…" Ron muttered.

Remus looked thoughtful for a moment, then asked, "Why would you want Harry to take Truth Taffy? Do you think he keeps things from you…secrets or something? I thought you were close."

Ron looked guilty for a moment, unsure whether to tell Remus about his suspicions that Harry was secretly carrying a torch for his sister. "I…uh…I'm not sure…I mean…Harry's a good mate. I don't think he'd want me to say."

Remus realized that he had put Ron on the spot. "Of course, you're too loyal to tell me. I was just thinking out loud." He thought back to his own friends at this age. No one outside their circle would ever be able to drag information out of any one of them. Or so he'd thought at the time.

Watching Remus' expression grow sad, Ron said cheerfully, "I'm sure Harry would tell you anything you want to know. He trusts you, Professor." He smiled at the older wizard.

Remus smiled back and said, "Mmm…I'm sure you're right." Then he looked carefully at Ron and asked, "Do you trust me enough to tell me where you really went today? I mean, why would you go to Honeydukes?"

Ron shrugged and looked down at his hands. "We never really intended to go there. Harry doesn't go in much for sweets since he's been training with this fencing instructor. We were just talking and lost track of the time. Sorry if you were worried. Why did you want to see Harry today?"

"It's just been a while. Then when he was missing, all the Professors helped search. Naturally everyone was worried…You do know that the Death Eaters haven't given up the hope of kidnapping him."

"Why do they want his blood?" Ron asked as though it was common knowledge.

"Who told you that?" Remus shook his head. Harry and Ron should be thinking about eating sweets and chasing girls, not worrying about Death Eaters out for blood.

Dumbledore appeared at their side and asked Remus to join him in his office, presumably to make sure that Harry's guardian wasn't plotting revenge against Professor Snape.

Left alone with a sleeping Harry, Ron wondered if he should wake his friend and ask him questions of his own. It was tempting, but in his heart, Ron knew the answers to those questions. More than anything, he wanted to be sure that no harm came to Harry while he was under the influence of this truth drug. He settled into reading his Quidditch magazine.

Ginny joined him. "Has he been asleep this whole time?" she asked, taking off her cloak. She made herself comfortable on the other side of the bed.

"Yes. I guess it's a side effect."

At the sound of their voices, Harry's eyes fluttered. He was struggling to reach through the fog in his mind to Ginny and Ron. He wanted to be with them, but it was too difficult. He tried to speak. It only sounded like sleepy murmuring to the others in the room.

Ron asked, "Do you want me to stay? I don't know if you should be alone with Harry. I mean…unchaperoned." Ron made a 'tsking' noise and shook his head. He could see no harm in teasing his sister.

"Shut it, Ron. Madam Pomfrey is right over there in her office. And Harry's sound asleep. I'm just going work on my sketchbook. Go back to Gryffindor and tell Hermione not to be late. She said she'd take over the watch after dinner." Of course she had no intention of leaving until Harry finally woke up.

Once alone, Ginny took Harry's hand and said, "Don't worry, Harry. Nothing's going to happen to you tonight. Not while we're here." He couldn't rouse himself to speak, but he squeezed her hand.

To Be Continued…

Notes to reviewers: Thanks! Your reviews are important to me.

Mediwitch: You must be a real Mediwitch. Thanks for the information. I promise not to try the caffeine thing on my sister although I've been threatening to for years. Thanks for writing!

Lily: Thanks for reviewing! I'll try to be faster.

cintishortstop: The dragon will be a part of the story later on. Thanks for writing!

Random Freak: Thanks! I'll try to hurry.

Nightwing 509: The items in the box are helping Harry to discover his heritage. Since his family is dead, I think that would be important to him. Thanks for writing!

Zijnehoogheid: I am so grateful to you for catching that. I did the same thing to poor Hedwig earlier in the story, but I caught it before I posted that time. Thanks!

Iluvatar: You are so consistent! Thanks for reviewing!

Lourdes: Things start progressing more quickly after Christmas. That's Christmas in the story. Thanks for reviewing!

PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: Thanks for writing!

squirrel-bladder4: Thanks for reviewing!

athenakitty: The torque is itself a band of gold. Ron and Hermione's lips are sealed. Maybe someone could give Harry a holster for Christmas.

ValarPrincess: Thanks for reviewing. You are very kind. Like you, I can't wait for book six.

Ghost Magic: Thanks for your review! I will try.

Gryphonmistress: Nice image of Viking Harry! I thought long and hard about that Parselmouth thing, but since it's definitely not canon, I decided against it. Tempting, though it was. Thanks for your review!

Ziny: Thanks for all your nice comments!

GinnyPotter88: Thanks for your review! Harry and Ginny do make a good couple.

suze: Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you're enjoying the story.

Butler: I like your suggestion of restraining Ron and taking his wand first. They really don't realize that Ron wants them to get together. Thanks for reviewing!

shotgunn: Thanks for all your nice comments! Of course I loved the new movie! I hope they keep this cast together for all of the movies. The time theme was well done. First the man reading _A Brief History of Time_ in the Leaky Caldron, then the clocks chiming and those great shots of Harry looking out through the giant clock. Very nice!

hp4ashley: It started with that kiss after the Quidditch match. Then Harry and Ginny hid their growing relationship because they think Ron wouldn't be happy. Of course the reader knows that's not true. Thanks for reviewing!

Deathzealot: Thanks for writing!

Wicked Teaspoon27: Thanks for all your comments. You're very kind. Ron and Hermione are wasting their time matchmaking. The dragons will be back. Thanks for reviewing!

SilverWarrior: Tonks and Remus are in the background, but I agree with you. Remus deserves someone nice to cheer him up. Thanks for writing!

Angie: Thanks for your comments. Harry is afraid to tell Ron and Ginny's not thrilled at the prospect either. Thanks for reviewing!

Ignorant: If you're an Arsenal fan, then you must be very happy. They had a phenomenal year. Weren't they undefeated? That has to be some sort of record. Of course, who was that team that won the F.A. cup? Thanks for writing!

dishant: Twice a week? I'll try. Thanks for reviewing!

hpz26: Thanks! I like dragons, too.

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	20. Keeping Secrets

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Notes to reviewers are at the end of the story. I really appreciate all of you taking the time to read and review my story. Last week was really busy. I've never had so many projects due at the same time. Thankfully it's over. It's just a memory.

Chapter 20

Keeping Secrets

A bitter winter settled around Hogwarts. The towers and battlements were trimmed with rows of icicles as storm after storm blasted the area. The constant snow kept the students inside except when forced to go to Care of Magical Creatures or Herbology. Then they usually huddled together with warming charms and hurried to their destination.

Feet crunching as he trudged through the snowy field, Harry arrived on his own to Magical Creatures class. They were meeting in the dragon enclosure to watch the animals being prepared to travel. The Dragon Masters wanted to get their charges back to the reserve in the Hebrides so they could be home for the holidays.

His classmates had mostly gathered around to watch the professionals work. Hagrid was talking to Darin MacFusty about the travel plans. The team of handlers planned to fly alongside the dragons with charms trained in their direction.

"So 'yer going ter herd them back to their island?" Hagrid asked wistfully. "Won't be the same without 'em."

A mutter went through the crowd at Hagrid's words. Truth was that most of his students were looking forward to the dragon's departure.

Malfoy and his Slytherin friends walked over to where Harry was standing alone and said, "Going to miss your fire breathing friend, Potter. No one to keep you warm over the holidays."

"Shut it, Malfoy," Harry said without bothering to look at him. He had too much on his mind to spend time dealing with Malfoy's pitiful insults.

"What will you do if I don't, Potter? Use the power of your necklace on me?" Draco asked, smirking. The fact that Harry wore the torque had become common knowledge among the advanced Magical Creatures students since he used it frequently with the dragons.

"You can use your power on me anytime, Harry," someone said in a husky voice close to his ear.

Startled, Harry turned around to see Susannah Martin, a flirty Hufflepuff seventh year, smiling at him briefly. She was pretty and she knew it. She arched an eyebrow as if asking a question and pursed her pink mouth into its usual pout. He smiled and shook his head. "Hello, Susannah."

She smiled back. "Hello, Harry. Did you come to watch the dragons or were you looking for me?"

"I think you know the answer to that," he said.

"I'm just checking. If I keep asking, maybe one day, I'll get what I want." Susannah had been working on Harry for months without success. She figured there was no harm in trying.

Malfoy moved close to them and looked the pretty blonde girl up and down in a lewd way. She didn't miss the invitation in his arrogant sneer. Linking her arm with Harry's, she said, "You're wasting your time, Malfoy."

Someone in Malfoy's group said something that Harry couldn't hear and the rest of them laughed. The back of his neck prickled. The atmosphere became charged with energy.

The dragons spread their wings over their handlers, straining to break free. Darin broke off his conversation with Hagrid and hurried to help. The larger female dragon was twisting her neck as if trying to throw off an invisible rope.

Just as Harry was turning around, Hannah Abbot walked out of the feeding enclosure levitating what appeared to be a large cauldron and said, "Looks like they weren't very hungry. Neither of them ate their breakfast." She stopped in her tracks as she saw them fussing against their handlers. "Does that mean they haven't had their potions?" Her eyes grew wide and she dropped the cauldron. The spilt liquid turned the snow pink.

Right on cue, the dragons took turns giving out a fiery roar. One of the bursts flew twenty feet and ignited the feeding enclosure. Students ran in several different directions. The dragons finally broke free and took flight, narrowly missing the stunners sent their way by the Dragon Masters.

One of them made an impossible turn and headed toward Harry. The other one followed. Susannah took off running, but Harry stood his ground. They flew straight over him, one after the other, blocking out the sun. Then very quickly both dragons flew out of reach of stunners and almost out of sight.

The Dragon Masters set out on brooms to follow them. Harry remained calm as he watched the dragons escape. He'd sensed they wouldn't hurt him. Part of him wished he were flying away with them -- removed from the confines of the castle, flying free over the mountains. Free from all the people who didn't trust him. Soon they looked like small birds in the distance.

Professor Snape's sharpish voice startled Harry out of his reverie. "Don't just stand there gawking, Potter. Bring them back."

Harry looked over. Professor Snape stood with his head tilted back, looking down his nose at him. Wrapped in a heavy cloak, a black wizard's hat pulled low on his head against the cold, the Potions Master looked out of place in the fresh air and snow. He was carrying the bag he used to collect vials of dragon's blood.

"You make it sound so easy, Professor. Why don't you show me how it's done?" Harry had been forced to forgive the Potion Master's "prank" with the Truth Taffy. Dumbledore was worried that Snape's life would be in jeopardy outside the castle. Harry was worried that pressing the issue would bring out the fact that Harry and Ron had been exploring a cave in Wales, not out on an innocent walk, so Harry and Professor Snape continued their mutual dislike and distrust.

Snape sniffed. "I thought you were the Dragon Master's golden boy. Surely you could bring them back here with a snap of your fingers," he said dryly. Lifting an eyebrow and leveling his gaze at Harry's face, he added, "Oh. And ten points from Gryffindor for your insolent tone."

Harry sighed. This was exactly why he wished he could fly away from Hogwarts. He needed a break from Snape and Malfoy, some time alone away from the press of people with their mean spirited comments and their expectations.

Meeting Snape's stare, he gathered his energy and said, "_Accio Firebolt!_" Holding out his hand, he tried not to feel foolish. It took some time, but he was rewarded with a whooshing sound that grew louder until his Firebolt appeared. Without further comment he took off in the direction he'd last seen the dragons, glad to be flying free over the forest and mountains.

He didn't have to do much though. The dragons were already flying back towards Hogwarts with their handlers. Harry met up with Mr. MacFusty and asked, "Anything I can help with, sir?"

"They're under control now. Some of the wards were weak enough for them to break free, but they didn't get far." He laughed heartily. "You'd make a great addition to our team, Harry, coming after us fearlessly."

The team swiftly returned to the paddock. Harry could see Professor Snape was talking with Malfoy and two Slytherins. Having smothered the fire in the feeding shed, the other students moved over the smoking ashes while Malfoy's group stood idly by. As the dragons landed, their handlers moved closer to stun them further.

Seeing Snape grab his kit and approach the magnificent black creatures, several people shouted, "Wait! Professor Snape, Stop!" Snape turned in the direction of their voices, his back to the dragon.

Their warnings were too late, the dragon caught sight of Snape and let out a blast of fire that hit him in the back. Without thinking, Harry yelled, "_Tempus freezus!_" The spell bought him a few minutes time as the fire froze in mid air just barely touching Snape's backside. Levitating the frozen Snape, Harry moved him out of the path of the dragon's fiery breath, dousing the back of his robes with water from his wand.

As time returned to its normal pace, Snape screamed. Harry's eyes widened at the Potion Master's fury. He stepped away from him. Behind them the handlers subdued the dragon.

"Get away from me, Potter!" Snape growled, slowly and deliberately. "And why do you insist on watering me? You do realize it is a cold day." Clearly he hadn't noticed that the back of his robes was still smoking slightly.

"I'm so sorry, Professor," Harry said flatly, glaring at Snape. The crowd gathered around them as the Potions Master continued to berate Harry for getting him wet. In the end, saving Snape from the dragon's breath cost Gryffindor fifty points and earned Harry a detention.

As he walked away fuming, Hannah Abbot followed him. "He's always so unfair, Harry. Try not to think about it. We all know what really happened. If you hadn't stepped in, Professor Snape would be toast right now…You were really wonderful, Harry." She smiled at him shyly, putting her hand on his arm.

Harry stopped his furious stride and summoned all the politeness he could find. "Thanks, Hannah. I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but I really need to be alone right now." He could tell his words hurt. "I appreciate your sympathy. I really do…I'm just going to take a walk and calm down."

Before she could answer, he headed down toward the lake. Glancing over his shoulder, he could see Hannah was still watching him. Maybe he had been rude, but he just wanted some time to think.

As the path turned leading Harry out of sight, he leapt on his Firebolt and took off. He flew low until he was on the far side of the lake. There he sat down on a rock and pulled a small book out of his pocket. He'd begun to carry the book and the phoenix shaped black stone with him. He uttered the translation charm that Hermione had taught him and the words "Myrddin's Torch" appeared on the cover next to the drawing of a strange gnarly tree.

He glanced through the pages wondering what he could discover. This book was a key to his past and maybe his future. It had become very important to him to explore its mysteries. He was the last of his family. There was no one left to show him how to be a Potter, but with this book he might discover something of what it meant. He hoped that part of who he was could be found in discovering where he came from.

He turned the page to the map of Scotland with the forest carefully marked. Deciding quickly or perhaps acting rashly, Harry decided to Apparate to the forest. He rationalized that he was far enough away from Hogwarts' wards to make it unlikely that he would be caught. He could simply take a quick look and return.

Concentrating hard, he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, Harry found himself standing on a barren hillside in a strong wind. Snow swirled around him, making it difficult to see. On a clear day, the view would probably have been lovely, but right now he couldn't see very much. He noticed a circle of stones piled on each other and a small plaque. They appeared to have been put there by Muggles.

The plaque read, "Hart Fell." It told the story of Merlin's supposed stronghold. This must be the site. Looking around him, Harry was a little skeptical. It was hard to imagine it. Merlin's Scottish refuge was supposed to be a wooded forest. The poetry in his book described lush forests and magical creatures. The hilltop he was standing on was completely devoid of vegetation. There was just a pile of stones and a plaque on a windy, snow covered hill.

Wanting to share his discovery, he pulled out his mirror and called Ginny. She was sitting in her History of Magic class drawing a picture of Crookshanks playing by the fire and unconsciously humming a quiet tune. Professor Binns was droning on about something. Colin sat beside her, diligently taking notes. She startled when he leaned over and said, "I think your rucksack is making a noise."

"Thanks, Colin," she said with a smile. She reached down and opened her bag. It was her mirror. With a whispered incantation and quiet wave of her wand, the window flew open causing quite a commotion as the incoming gust of wind blew papers around.

As everyone was chasing the papers, Ginny answered her mirror quietly. "Hi, Harry. I can't talk now. I'm in History class."

He was glad to see her nose appear. "Binns won't notice, Gin. This can't wait. I found the enchanted forest…only there's nothing here. This is definitely the place, but there's nothing but a barren hillside. See." He held the mirror out for her to get a good look around, well as good a look as possible with a small mirror.

She was shocked. "What were you thinking?" she asked in an excited whisper. Grabbing her sketches and her bag, she waved goodbye to Colin and left History class. Binns didn't seem to care.

Once in the hallway, she said, "How did you get there? Shouldn't you be in Magical Creatures? Does anyone even know you've gone?" She was genuinely alarmed.

Harry answered, "Creatures class was dreadful. Snape was there." He described what happened with the dragons and Snape. Trying to sound brighter he continued, "Anyway…there's no harm done. I was just curious…and I'll be back soon."

She could see his grin. "All right. But I think I want a longer explanation when you get here." Smiling back at him, she wasn't paying attention to where she was walking and she ran smack into Terry Boot who didn't seem at all sorry.

"Where are you going?" he asked. Realizing who had run into him, he added, "You don't need a little mirror to check your face. You're beautiful." He smiled at her, thinking he was suavely flirting.

She could a hear a muffled, "Oh, bollocks! Tell him to go stuff himself."

Taking her attempt to hide a smile as evidence that she enjoyed his attention, Terry cleared his throat and said, "Maybe we could go to Hogsmeade together next Saturday, Ginny. It's the last trip before the holidays."

Ginny blushed, realizing that Harry could hear every word. "I…I've already made plans for Saturday. But thank you…Terry. I'm…flattered."

Watching her face flush, Terry did not feel at all discouraged. "Maybe some other time, then."

"Maybe," Ginny whispered before giving a sharp gasp as Dobby appeared at her elbow. Letting out her breath, she said, "Dobby! You scared me."

"Dobby is sorry, Miss Wheezy, but I am finding you on urgent business of Headmaster Dumbledore." The elf's green eyes were as round as saucers.

"What does he want, Dobby?"

"Dobby cannot say, Miss." He gave a small giggle as he looked at Terry Boot. "The Headmaster wishes to see you immediately."

"Well, thanks. I'll go there directly."

In an audible whisper, Dobby said, "You'll need to remember Gobstoppers, Miss." He winked meaningfully.

Terry and she rolled their eyes over the elf's head. Assuring Dobby that she took his meaning, Ginny said goodbye to Terry. As she walked, she held up her mirror and said, "Harry are you still there?" All she could see was a bunch of white.

Harry answered, sounding cheerful. "I'm still here, Gin. I'm flying around the area on my Firebolt. I want a quick look, then I'll come back to Hogwarts." He carefully did not mention Terry Boot. As long as they kept their relationship secret, they both had to put up with moments like that.

"Dumbledore wants to see me in his office. I'm thinking he found out about the Cheering Charm biscuits." Harry and she had perfected some chocolate chip biscuits with an extra something to beat the winter blahs. They'd tested several recipes on the Slytherin lunch table before deciding they were ready. The early versions had mixed results, notably the time Vincent Crabbe sobbed nonstop for an hour or so after lunch. It was almost enough to make them feel sorry for the big thug. Now that the biscuits cheered people as planned, Ginny was going to give them to Fred and George for Christmas.

She reached the gargoyle and said, "I have to go. Hurry back, Harry." As she approached the open door of the Headmaster's office, she could hear excited voices.

Snape said, "There's nothing to worry about. He's not a helpless little boy. And he's obviously been controlling those dragons all along. He probably brought them here along with that Lethifold. This attack on me proves it. He's controlling dark creatures. What further proof do you need?"

Moody growled something she couldn't make out. She also recognized McGonagall's voice saying something.

The Headmaster's voice boomed over the rest of them. "Stop this, Severus. Harry is not controlling anything. He's in grave danger. Away from the protection of Hogwarts, anything could happen to him. We must take steps to find him immediately."

"Why do you trust him?" Snape asked.

Sounding tired, Dumbledore said, "He often wonders the same thing about you." He looked straight at Snape.

Ginny made a discreet knock on the open door. The Professors looked surprised. She looked at the carpet, uncomfortable with their scrutiny. Even the portraits on the walls seemed to be staring at her.

Dumbledore smiled at her. "Welcome, Miss Weasley." He looked at her expectantly, then added, "Please sit down."

She looked at McGonagall before moving to the chair the Headmaster was indicating. "Thank you, Professor," she said quietly before she sat. She noticed that he had a map of Great Britain spread out on his desk. On it she could see several markings that blinked and moved although she had no way of knowing what they meant.

The Headmaster said, "It's best not to waste time. I think perhaps you have something to tell us, Miss Weasley."

Turning to Dumbledore, she said, "What would you like to know, Professor?" She bit her lower lip, trying to keep her mind off those Cheering Charm biscuits.

"Harry Potter is not on Hogwarts grounds. Do you know how we could contact him?" The twinkle was still in his eye, but his tone of voice commanded an answer.

Ginny took a deep breath and said, "I'm sure he just went for a walk around the grounds, Professor. Perhaps he wandered too far away. I understand there was some incident during his Magical Creatures class today."

The room seemed a little tense. Out of the corner of her eye Ginny saw Snape pouring a cup of tea. She stood and leaned over the map for a closer look. "What's this, Professor?" she asked.

"It's just an ordinary map. We were deciding where to look for Mr. Potter. When it occurred to me that you might know where he is." He looked at her expectantly.

Ginny remembered that Dumbledore knew about their charmed mirrors because she had let him use hers when Harry was kidnapped from the Three Broomsticks. But she didn't want to admit to still having the mirrors for fear of what the other Professors might think. Snape might insist the mirrors be confiscated.

Thinking this over, Ginny decided to study the map instead of answering Dumbledore. It did look like just an ordinary wizarding map. Without looking directly at him, she was aware of Professor Snape walking toward her left side. His hand was outstretched to offer her a cup of tea. She stepped in his path and lost her balance, knocking the cup out of his hand. The tea sprayed all over Snape, then the cup clattered across the map. "Sorry…I'm so sorry. Oh…how clumsy of me, Professor." She sounded earnestly surprised and contrite.

Professor McGonagall looked like she would burst from the laugh she was stifling. Dumbledore wasn't really trying to hide his amusement as he cleaned up the mess with a wave of his hand.

With his magic eye rolling around its socket, Moody laughed loudly, "Fool me once, eh, Miss Weasley. Well done." She just shrugged and kept her head down, trying to look innocent. Of course, Ginny knew it was unlikely that Snape would try to drug her the same way he had Harry, but she thought that a girl couldn't be too careful.

Snape sneered at her and opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by Professor Dumbledore who asked, "Did Mr. Potter tell you where he was?"

Realizing how impossible it was to keep anything from the Headmaster, she said, "He went for a ride on his Firebolt after his Creatures class. He'll be back any minute. I'm sure he didn't mean to worry anyone." She looked around at the Professors and sat down. The chairs in the Headmaster's office were always deliciously squishy. Vaguely she wondered if they were charmed for comfort.

Dumbledore rang a small bell. Dobby appeared out of thin air. "When Mr. Potter arrives would you ask him to come to my office, please." Dobby did a litle happy dance before giving a formal bow and disappearing the same way he came.

They waited only a few minutes before Harry knocked on the door. He grinned at Ginny who was relieved to see him despite the fact that she'd known exactly where he was all along.

Professor Snape began the inquisition. "Where were you, Potter? That is, after you stomped away from the dragon enclosure." Harry's lips grew thinner as he listened to Snape. He felt like nothing, not even Veritaserum, could make him talk to this man. He was so grossly unfair.

Looking at Harry, Dumbledore said, "We're glad to see you have returned unharmed, Harry. Regarding the incident in Magical Creatures class, the points for Gryffindor have been restored and you will not have to serve detention since the circumstances have been fully discovered. Every eyewitness says that you put out the flames in Professor Snapes robes."

Ginny and Harry exchanged looks. That had never happened before. No matter how ridiculous the punishment, neither of them could ever remember one that had been overturned.

"But…" Their attention returned to Dumbledore as he sounded deadly serious. "Leaving Hogwarts grounds, whatever the reason, is a very serious matter. All reports say the Death Eaters are still hoping to kidnap you. The real consequence for wandering away from the castle could be kidnap, torture and death. Since you escaped that fate today, I will reinstate Professor Snape's punishment."

Harry didn't try to lie. He said, "Sorry, Professor. I was…well…curious about something."

McGonagall, stood up with the help of her cane and said, "Hrmph…really, Potter. Curious!" She sounded truly exasperated. "I'm very disappointed in you. Can you tell us where you were at least?"

"How'd you get there, Potter?" Moody growled.

Realizing that he could be in further trouble, Harry wisely decided to say nothing and stared at the floor. Glad that he'd banished his Firebolt back to his trunk when he arrived back at the castle, Harry stole a glance at Ginny.

She seemed unconcerned about the proceedings, including the scrutiny of so many Professors at once. She was really marvelous. Nerves of steel. Seeing her stand firm gave him strength. He could have just as much nerve as she did. He lifted his head up, chin out in defiance.

Seeing his stance, Dumbledore dismissed them, silencing Snape's protest with a look. "Better get going. We'll forego your tutorial today, Harry. I'm sure you can find some way to use the extra time."

As Ginny and Harry hurried away, they took turns whispering in each other's ears. Harry said, "Did you see the look on Snape's face? Like he'd swallowed a flobberworm whole. Hey, that's not a bad idea."

Ginny laughed. "He's stupid git. Everyone knows it."

"Thanks for not mentioning Hart Fell," he said, looking at her appreciatively.

"Don't mention it, Harry," she said and they both laughed. As they came around the corner, laughing, they caught Ron and Hermione snogging behind a suit of armor.

"Ew," said Ginny dramatically. The two of them jumped apart and Ron looked angry. Hermione was blushing to the roots of her hair. Ginny made a tsking sound. "Shouldn't prefects be setting an example? There are young children running about the castle." She shook her head, "Kids this days…"

Harry grinned at her. Looking at his friends' discomfort, he grabbed Ginny's hand and pulled her away. Back over his shoulder, he said, "Sorry Ron…Hermione. We'll just leave you to it then."

Ron watched Harry and Ginny run down the corridor together like carefree little children. Looking back at Hermione, he said, "I can't understand those two. Why can't they see how perfect they are together? When else does Harry ever seem that…happy?"

They had decided to stop matchmaking after the time Ginny had to hex Malfoy down by the lake. Hermione said, "We've been over this. They're good friends. They'll…figure..." She noticed Ron's mouth was swollen and slightly red from kissing. She had a hard time keeping her train of thought.

"Figure what?" he asked, pulling her close to him again. They forgot about everything but each other.

After dinner, Ron and Hermione were working at their usual table near the fire in the Gryffindor common room. Except for some worried looking fifth years near the window, they were alone. The weeks since Ron and Harry explored the cave had flown by. The Christmas holiday would begin on Saturday.

While relieved that no one knew her friends had been exploring the cave, Hermione was upset that the boys were forced to keep the truth from Dumbledore. She looked at Ron over her Ancient Runes textbook and said, "I'm still not sure we did the right thing. If we can't be honest with each other…."

Ron knew just what she was talking about. She'd brought it up almost every time they were alone during the last few weeks. "Would you rather I was expelled, Hermione?" asked Ron, giving her a wide-eyed look that he felt sure would gain her sympathy.

The puppy eyes worked. She didn't want to contemplate life at Hogwarts without her boyfriend. "They'd never expel you. Ron, I…I just think we have to trust Dumbledore. As long as we have him on our side, we'll be all right. But, if he doesn't really know what's going on..." She closed the book she was reading and walked over to the fireplace.

"Harry's the one keeping secrets. What about him?" Ron asked. Since returning from the cave, Harry had been fairly closed mouthed about the experience. He told them he spoke with Niniane, but he didn't show them the scrolls he'd found. Ron thought she sounded like a crazy old ghost. Hermione thought it confirmed the theory that a Potter long ago had somehow rescued Merlin from being entombed alive within a cave.

When Harry first woke up in the infirmary, he was furious that Snape had spiked his drink with the Truth Taffy. He began shouting about how he couldn't trust any of the Professors anymore. Lupin wasn't much happier. The two of them were plotting their revenge until Dumbledore dropped by.

The meeting with Dumbledore and Lupin must have been really intense, but Harry simply told his friends that he'd agreed with the Headmaster's decision. Snape would be reprimanded, but not dismissed. Hermione had urged Harry to confess everything. She wanted Dumbledore to know that Voldemort had probably been in that cave.

Then Ron had muttered something about wanting to give Harry some of the Truth Taffy himself. At that point, Harry said that he needed to be alone for a while and moved toward the dormitory stairs.

Hermione didn't want to let it rest. She called after him. "If you don't tell Dumbledore, Harry, maybe I will." She felt his green eyes staring into hers.

After a moment, Harry said, "I know you don't mean that, Hermione. You'd never betray any of us. Not like the Professors." He looked really tired, maybe the after effects of the drug.

She realized she couldn't violate their friendship. Until it was all right with Harry and Ron, she'd have to respect their wishes.

Harry stood with one foot on the first step and gave her a small smile. "Snape doesn't trust anyone but Dumbledore really. I think it's sad. I'm lucky to have friends like you." Harry sighed, thinking he could do a better job of trusting his friends himself. He just had a lot to think over.

Aloud he said, "This Talking Truth Taffy seems like something any one of us might have used for a prank…I'm assuming you meant you would have used it on me for a prank, Ron. Or maybe you were thinking you'd give it to me when I'm having trouble sleeping." He yawned widely. Harry laughed at their solemn expressions. "We can talk tomorrow. I'm really tired."

That conversation had taken place weeks before, but Harry had still avoided really confiding in his friends. He wanted to sort things out for himself before dragging them into something more. Ron and he could still be expelled if anyone found out so Harry adamantly refused to confess their trip to Dumbledore.

Now weeks had passed and Hermione was still working on it. Standing by the common room fire, she looked over at her boyfriend and said, "You could talk to Harry about this Ron. Or if you decided to confess to Dumbledore yourself, then Harry would have to agree."

"Drop it, Hermione. I'm not going to get Harry in trouble. He's a mate." Ron turned back to his Charms essay, breaking eye contact with his girlfriend before she could warm to her subject.

Ginny and Colin Creevey arrived. Ron shot Hermione a look that said, "What does she see in that git?" He'd noticed the two of them had been studying together quite a bit lately.

Hermione greeted them politely as the two of them settled into the sofa in front of the fire to work on their Herbology essay. They were laughing about Robbie Johnson's latest run in, this time with a Climbing Sucker Bean. He'd panicked and screamed for some reason, frightening the plant he was pruning. It reacted by attaching itself to one of the fingers on his left hand. He'd tried to escape by hexing it, but the only spell he could remember was "_Erubescere!_" which simply turned the plant a brilliant red.

Finally Ron said, "Do you mind? Some of us are actually doing their work."

Hermione turned from studying the flames in the hearth and gave him a look of approval.

Ginny said, "You're just saying that to impress your girlfriend, Ron. You probably have the latest copy of _Quidditch Illustrated _hidden in that book." She gave a snort of disdain. Colin laughed.

Ron grumbled, "I'm not the one keeping secrets." He was thinking about the conversation. It was Harry that appeared to be unable to trust anyone these days.

No one noticed Ginny growing pale at Ron's statement. She suddenly became very interested in her Herbology notes. The group by the fire grew silent. Hermione went back to work. Eventually Colin left and Ginny stretched out in front of the fire. She needed to warm up after walking back from greenhouse four. The fire felt good.

Harry walked in so silently that no one noticed him. They hadn't even been aware of the portrait opening and closing. The common room was fairly crowded with people studying by now. Hermione and Ron were still working at the table near the fireplace. While he surveyed the scene, Harry's eyes were drawn to a figure stretched out before the fire. Ginny had fallen asleep, parchment in hand, head thrown back over a pillow. Harry's thoughts flashed back to last summer when he found her asleep in the back garden of the Burrow.

She was a vision. Her head tilted back exposed the curves of her throat. The firelight set her creamy skin and russet hair glowing. Harry wanted to touch her, feel the silk of her hair, brush her throat with his lips.

"Oi, Harry," Ron's voice broke through his reverie. Pretending that he hadn't noticed Harry's intense gaze at his sleeping sister, Ron continued, "Have you finished your Potions essay, yet? The eight uses of unicorn horns. I'm on number seven."

Harry's mind was far from Potions class, but he was grateful to Ron for helping him get his mind off Ginny before he threw himself down next to her in a crowded common room. He could feel heat spreading across his face. He turned to Ron and blinked. "Potions?" he asked, sounding a little disoriented.

"Yes, Potions, Harry," Ron said, thinking, 'Or do you just want to stare at my poor, defenseless sister while she sleeps?' He grinned at his friend.

Ron winced as Hermione elbowed him and said, "Have you been grading papers, Harry?"

Harry said, "Yes, Moody asked me to grade the first and second years essays on defending yourself against Red Caps. I did start writing the Potions essay earlier today, but I was hoping you'd still be up doing homework so I could join you." Realizing that Ginny's breathing had changed so she might actually be awake, he added, "Notice that interesting bit of drool on your sister's cheek, Ron. So drooling in your sleep is sort of a family trait?"

Hermione shook her head and went back to work. Ron stopped to watch the show.

Ginny sat up with a start, embarrassed to be caught drooling in front of the fire. She wiped her cheek which was perfectly drool free and scowled at Harry who was now grinning at her.

"Made you check! Anyway, now you can quit fake napping and join us." He was grinning at her like she was his favorite chocolate cake.

Hermione broke in. "It's already past her bedtime."

"Don't be silly," Ginny said, shaking her head. "I can stay up late with the grownups some of the time." Most of the school year, Ginny had maintained that she needed to be in bed by eleven for Quidditch training. Even after Hermione and Ron knew about the mirrors, she and Harry had continued to use them this way. It was the simplest way of having a private conversation, Hogwarts being a crowded boarding school.

Harry looked pleased that she was joining them. All four worked in silence for a while. Finally Ron stood up and stretched, declaring that he was going to bed.

"I meant to ask you earlier, Ron, and you, too, Hermione," Harry began. "Professor Lupin wanted me to invite everyone to lunch at the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade on Saturday. You, too, of course, Ginny. Unless you've already made some plans." Harry looked at her blush, remembering Terry Boot.

"I'd be glad to see the Professor," Hermione answered quickly. Maybe they would have a chance to clear the air with him. If Harry wouldn't confide in Dumbledore, maybe he would speak to Professor Lupin.

Ginny and Ron accepted the invitation, too, although Ginny had known about it for a while. Keeping things secret was becoming a habit with them.

Saturday arrived soon enough. The Gryffindors did some Christmas shopping then met Professor Lupin in the Three Broomsticks. He'd reserved a private room upstairs for them, away from the prying eyes of the crowded pub.

Madam Rosmerta greeted Remus cheerfully. She remembered him from his Hogwarts days. They all ordered the special of the day, chicken and ham pie served with your choice of greasy chips or mushy peas.

Leaning back in their chairs after finishing, Remus said, "I'm glad you could all come with Harry since I won't see you over the holidays. I thought it would be good to get away from Hogwarts for a change and Hogsmeade is reasonably safe."

"So you don't think there is too much of a danger right now, Professor?" asked Hermione. She pulled her bag away sharply from Ron who was trying to sneak a peek inside.

Lupin laughed as Ron made a face at Hermione trying to get her sympathy. Then he looked more serious and said, "You might say that there is no more danger here than anywhere else. We're in a private room, warded in. If anything dangerous occurred, we could exit via Portkey or Apparition fairly easily. There are Aurors discreetly hidden at the front and back entrances."

"We're as safe here as anyplace else then," Harry said. Ginny smiled at him warmly. She felt safe whenever she was with him.

Remus saw the look that passed between them, but didn't say anything. Instead he asked them all to tell him about Hogwarts. They talked about their classes and the latest pranks. He heard about Moody's Defense Against the Dark Arts methods, Snape's disagreeable attitude, and the dragon's final departure the day before.

Somewhere during the conversation Ron and Hermione started holding hands, a fact that Remus noticed without comment. Of course, it was common knowledge that they were dating. Remus also noticed the sort of code with which Harry and Ginny communicated, facial gestures, words slipped into the conversation that might have a double meaning. By the end of their conversation, he was sure that those two were closer than they wanted people to know. Or maybe they were closer than they had realized themselves.

As they were putting on their cloaks and gathering packages, Hermione asked Professor Lupin for a quiet word. "I think Harry is keeping secrets, Professor. In fact, I know he is. It isn't good for him to keep everything bottled up. And I just wanted to say that maybe you could get him to open up over the holidays." Harry was planning to spend the first week of the holidays with Remus at Grimmauld Place, then spend the rest of the holidays with the Weasleys at the Burrow. Remus would be going to Wolfhaven Inn during that time.

"Secrets?" he whispered, trying to act surprised. Watching Harry help Ginny with her cloak, he was pretty sure he knew at least one of Harry's secrets.

"Yes, Professor. I'm beginning to worry about Harry. He needs someone he can trust."

Before he could answer, they were interrupted by the sound of shouting coming from downstairs. An argument was in progress between some of the D.A. members and their least favorite Slytherins. Sophie Moon stood in the middle of the room, covered in butterbeer.

Professor Lupin stepped in to intervene only to be confronted by Malfoy. "Keep your long muzzle out of this werewolf. Oh…and here's the resident Mudblood. I can't believe they even serve your kind in this place. What kind of pub is this?"

Madam Rosmerta's troll like bartender stepped forward at that comment and said, "No need for that sort of talk here. I'll have to ask you to leave."

Malfoy looked him up and down with a sneer on his face. Then he turned and fixed Sophie with an icy glare. "I meant what I said, Moon. You've only yourself to blame for what happens next." He turned with a swirl of his expensive black cloak and left the pub, his usual entourage following in his wake.

The students remaining in the pub gathered around. Some comforted Sophie. Several cast a Cleansing Charm in her direction. Harry was glad to see that they were from all the different houses. Others gathered around Ginny, asking her about her shopping and did she need someone to walk her back to the castle. These Harry was not so glad to see.

Ernie Macmillan pulled Harry aside and explained what had happened in low tones, hoping that Sophie couldn't hear. Apparently Malfoy had seen her with some of her D.A. friends and gone off on her, ranting about what a disgrace she was to purebloods everywhere. He ended with threatening a dismal future for her and her family if she didn't see the error of her ways and stick to her own kind.

Hearing this, Hermione went off on a rant of her own about tolerance. Everyone nodded sympathetically. Not wanting a reincarnation of S.P.E.W. to develop, Ron decided he should collect his girlfriend. They left the pub with Hermione still talking and Ron agreeing with everything she said.

Over the crowd, Harry looked longingly at Ginny. Now that he knew what to look for, Professor Lupin caught the look. What surprised him was the look Ginny gave him back. It was a look that said, "Help, I'm surrounded!"

Professor Lupin stepped forward and claimed Ginny's arm. "Miss Weasley, if you're finished here, we'd better get going. I promised your father that I would see you safely to the castle." She looked grateful as she stepped away from the small group of disappointed young men.

When they'd almost reached the door, Remus turned around and asked, "Harry, are you coming?"

Once outside, Harry and Ginny stole glances at each other while walking on either side of Remus. The sun had come out, shining brightly on the snow. They trudged along the icy road with their steamy breath showing in front of them. None of them spoke much.

Remus thought about saying, 'So Hermione says you're keeping secrets, but I'm betting there isn't much about you that Ginny doesn't know.' He decided against putting them both on the spot. He'd have a better opportunity to speak with Harry at Grimmauld Place without the pretty red head to distract him.

Suddenly out of nowhere a lump of soft snow crashed over Ginny's head. Looking behind them, Harry shouted angrily, "Where'd that come from?" He shaded his eyes with his hand and stared at the trees beside the road. Ginny and Remus looked, too.

While they searched, they heard a quiet whoosh behind them. Another, larger lump of soft snow crashed over Remus' head. "Oh, Professor. Just look at you. You're…just covered with snow." This time, Harry completely failed to sound angry and burst out laughing.

"You're in for it now, Potter," Ginny shouted. Pulling out her wand, she uttered a quick charm. Behind Harry a large Yeti shaped snowman loomed.

Seeing Remus' eyes grow wide at the sight, Harry turned around just in time for the enchanted Bigfoot to 'crush' him in a big hug, dissolving in the process. Harry stood, half buried in snow. He shook his head like a wet puppy, spraying Ginny and Remus with snow. Then he shouted, "You're no match for me, Weasley. I don't know why you try."

She giggled and ran up the road a short distance, disappearing behind a tree.

Remus shook his head, thinking that Ginny probably was a very good match for Harry, but wisely deciding to stay out of the fray. The two teenagers continued to enchant snow to follow each other around, laughing at the various snowman shapes they conjured for each other. Harry's answer to her Yeti was a snowman shaped like a small dragon. Her response was one shaped like Snape.

When Ginny disappeared behind a tree again, he shouted, "_Accio, Ginny!_" Nothing happened. He started to worry, then something solid knocked him down into a snowdrift. "Oomph…what the blazes was that."

Remus hurried toward Harry, thinking the game had turned into something sinister.

Harry was flat on his back rubbing his arm. Looking around, he said, "_Finite Incantatem!_" Ginny appeared sprawled on the ground beside him. "Disillusionment Charm?" Harry asked. She nodded, rubbing her arm as well. He pulled her into a hug and said, "I'm sorry."

She answered sweetly, "It's not your fault. You couldn't see me well enough to catch me. But it does mean that I won the snow fight. I'd say knocking you flat means I won." She smiled widely.

He brushed the snow out of her soggy wet hair, searching her face. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were bright from the exercise. Her nose was red and running slightly. He thought she'd never looked more beautiful.

Professor Lupin cleared his throat and stared at his shoes. "Game's over. We have to get back to Hogwarts before someone starts to worry."

Harry stood up and pulled Ginny to her feet. He noticed that her glove had a hole in one finger. Casting warming and drying charms on both of them, he rubbed her cold hands in his own. Professor Lupin pretended not to notice the way they were looking at each other. They walked the rest of the way to the castle in silence.

The Hogwarts Express was steaming in the station. Harry was excited for Christmas in a way that he'd never been before. Last year, he'd been wracked with guilt over witnessing Mr. Weasley's attack. While he remembered Sirius' cheerfulness with fondness, this year's Christmas was going to be special. He couldn't wait to give Ginny her present although he had no idea how he would manage it with all her brothers gathered around.

Very few students were staying at Hogwarts despite the Daily Prophet reporting that Death Eaters had been sighted all over Great Britain. Harry was looking forward to spending some time with Remus. They planned to visit the Potter vault and Sirius' memorial.

Harry, Ron and Hermione claimed a compartment near the back of the train. Ginny joined them with Luna and Neville in tow.

As they stowed their things, Luna continued her explanation of the significance of toad droppings. Neville had a firm grip on Trevor and was listening as though fascinated by every word. He looked like he couldn't wait for Trevor to leave a 'dropping' so he could confirm Luna's words.

Some people came by to ask Harry about the D.A. meetings in January. The group had decided to hold a friendly dueling contest. Harry had agreed to officiate instead of compete. For a while, their compartment was really crowded, but people cleared out as the trip wore on.

Harry noticed the landscape outside the train looked like the area around Hart Fell. He still hadn't told Ron and Hermione about his little trip. He just couldn't face another lecture from Hermione about talking to Dumbledore or the hurt expression on Ron's face when he found out that Harry went alone. It had been a split second decision to go and he hadn't really learned anything, he rationalized. It occurred to Harry that Ginny knew all his carefully guarded secrets. Odd really, when he considered that his relationship with her was one of them.

As the trip continued, the girls settled into reading _Witch Weekly_ and _The Quibbler_ while Ron and Harry played a game of wizard's chess. Neville's attention alternated between watching Luna read and making suggestions to Harry about the game. Whether it was the rhythmic clacking of the train on the tracks or the lack of something to do, Neville soon fell asleep.

The compartment door slid open and Colin Creevey walked in shyly holding a small brightly wrapped package. "Ginny, could I speak to you alone for a minute."

She looked surprised. Swallowing hard, she tried to sound casual. "Sure, Colin. But can't we talk right here?"

A flush covered his cheeks. "I…I'd rather talk outside, Ginny…if you don't mind." He looked at Ron nervously.

Seeing Ron's glare, Ginny quickly agreed to step outside. The moment she closed the door, Ron leapt up and pulled Extendable Ears from his pocket.

"Ron!" Hermione said, shocked. "Doesn't your sister deserve some privacy?"

He looked at his girlfriend like she had two heads, then he turned to Harry and said, "You're with me, right?" He held out one of the ears to Harry who grabbed it without a word. The two boys closed their eyes like that would help them hear better.

Hermione began to shout, "Ronald Weas…" was all she got out before Harry cast a Silencing Charm on her with a wave of his hand. She threw her magazine at him.

The whole scene was finished quickly as Ron and Harry exchanged panicked looks and tried to hand each other their charmed ears. Scrambling back to their chess game, Harry hid the ear evidence just in time for Ginny to return to the compartment.

Ron was giving Hermione a pleading look that made her smile. She probably would have laughed at his appeal if she hadn't been silenced.

Hoping Ginny wouldn't notice anything, Harry quietly removed the charm on Hermione. All she said was, "Ahh…I love the puppy face, Ron." Then she picked her magazine up off the floor and resumed her reading, looking a little too smug for Harry to be reassured.

Ginny looked at her brother, then at Harry and said, "Did you start a new game? I mean, you were sitting on the other side of the chess board before I stepped out with Colin."

Hermione laughed loudly, causing Luna to finally look up from the Quibbler.

Shrugging their shoulders, Ron and Harry exchanged seats. Ron asked, "So what did lover boy have to say, Ginny? You can tell your big brother."

"Ask Harry. He's got Extendable Ears sticking out of his pocket so he probably already knows." Ginny leaned back next to Hermione and whispered, "Boys!"

Harry pulled the ears out and gave them back to Ron. "At least we tried, Ron."

"Humph!" said Ginny. She wasn't thrilled at the thought that Ron and Harry had listened to her conversation with Colin. It was embarrassing.

Harry looked genuinely worried that he'd upset her. "I'm sorry, Ginny. We weren't thinking. We just reacted. Hermione tried to stop us." He gave her a small hopeful smile.

"You can't get out of this so easily. Sorry doesn't change the fact that you listened to a private conversation. And what about you big brother. It was probably your idea to listen. When are you going to realize that I'm old enough to make my own choices?" She couldn't stay mad at Harry. She thought it was sweet that he was a little jealous of Colin. But Ron was another matter. It was just this sort of attitude that kept her from going public about her relationship with Harry.

Ron turned beet red and said, "Excuse me for caring enough about my little sister to look after her. A lot of blokes out there only want one thing, Ginny. A pretty girl has to be careful."

"Colin's not like that. Don't you want me to be happy?"

Ron groaned and said, "I just wish you could see what would really make you happy. Colin's not right for you." Ron was really frustrated. "Help me out here, Harry."

Harry had grown pale as his friend's comments became more strident. Ron really didn't want Ginny to date. He gave Ginny an unreadable look and shook his head. "You're on your own here, Ron." Keeping his eyes on Ginny, Harry said, "I think she ought to be able to make her own choices, just like anyone else."

Hermione stood up and pulled on Ron's arm. "Time for a prefect run, Ronald." She hoped a walk up and down the train might calm him.

After the door closed on them, Harry said, "I pity any of your…admirers…that Ron comes across during his prefect rounds."

Ginny giggled, calming down. She moved over next to Harry and the two of them settled into a quiet conversation. When they heard voices in the corridor, Ginny stuck her hands in his pocket and said, "Any more Extendable Ears in there? Maybe we can…" she stopped short. Pulling out his little book, she asked, "Do you carry this with you now?"

He shrugged and said, "I keep it close so I can think things over. It's such a puzzle. I mean, what do you think this is for?" He pulled the small black phoenix stone out of his other pocket.

Tossing the stone lightly in the air, he was about to put it away when Luna said, "That looks like a Summons Stone although it's difficult to tell."

No one said anything, but Harry held the statue out to Luna. She took it in her hand and turned it over. "Summons Stones were used as a means of calling a familiar to a wizard's side."

"Sort of an ancient 'beeper'?" Harry asked. Ginny and Luna looked at him blankly.

Neville woke up at the sound of Luna's voice. Rubbing his eyes, he looked at the statue in her hand.

Then Luna continued, "The Summons Stone would be charmed like a modern Portkey to make a magical animal appear. People don't need them these days because we can just make a Portkey or cast a Summoning Charm." She shook her head as though deep in thought.

Neville asked, "Why would a wizard need a Summons Stone for a Phoenix? They can Apparate on their own."

She shrugged and returned the stone to Harry. "I could be wrong of course. It also looks a lot like a Spirit Statue. The ancient Celts captured the spirit of a magical animal within a statue, then they used them in their wedding ceremonies to increase fertility."

Eyes wide, Neville said, "When did you learn so much about the ancient Celts?"

"My father and I spent several weeks at the Stonehenge library researching the History of the Mackled Malaclaw. His friend Uldric was sure they were first sighted in Scandinavia, but father was convinced that they originated in Ireland. You know…because they cause people to be unlucky."

Neville said, "But I thought Irish people were lucky."

Luna shook her head knowingly and launched into a list of Irish laments.

She had a willing audience in Neville, but Ginny and Harry tuned her out as she droned on. Picking up his book, Harry started flipping pages looking for anything about Summons Stones or Spirit Statues. He frowned when he didn't find anything and let out an exasperated sigh. It was probably just another weird theory from Loony Lovegood. He pocketed the black statue.

Neville looked over at him. The little book caught his eye. "Are you reading about Herbology, Harry?" he asked, pointing to the gold tree on the front of the book.

Harry held the book out to Neville and said, "It's a book of poems and such that's been in my family for generations."

"Is there a poem about a Tanglewood Tree in your book?"

"A what kind of tree?" asked Ginny.

It was Neville's turn for a speech. "Tanglewood Trees are a myth. They used to grow only under very unique circumstances usually within the heart of a large and lush forest. They were said to have gnarled and twisted branches. The magical properties of the Tanglewood were supposed to be especially useful for conducting magical energy. Before wizards carried wands, they often constructed a staff. Some say Merlin's staff was made out of Tanglewood." He looked to see if Luna was impressed with his knowledge of magical growing things.

She smiled serenely and reopened the Quibbler. Stretching out so her feet were on the back of the train seat and her head was falling over the edge of the seat toward the floor.

Ginny tapped Neville's arm and asked, "But where can a Tanglewood Tree be found?"

"They're only found in stories, Ginny. It's just a myth." Neville shrugged.

They all turned to Luna, sensing she might have an opinion on the subject. "Well?" Ginny asked, looking at her friend's upside down face.

"Well…Neville's right of course. Who do you know that knows more about Herbology?" She shook her head as though it was obvious. Then she went back to reading with all of her blood rushing to her head.

Thinking it would be a world gone mad if Luna and Neville were right about everything, Harry smirked and said, "Luna, didn't you used to just turn the magazine upside down."

"I'm feeding my cerebral cortex, Harry. You should try it sometime. My father always says you should feed your brain first."

Ginny and Harry looked at each other and smiled just as Ron and Hermione returned. While her brother seemed considerably calmer, Ginny decided to pick up her _Witch Weekly_ and ignore him. At this, Harry settled in to rest, although he had no intention of sleeping. He just didn't feel like talking so he closed his eyes and enjoyed his last chance to sit with Ginny for a week.

If he'd felt guilty about keeping his relationship with Ginny from her brother before, he'd finally realized something. Keeping one secret led to keeping another secret until he had a whole secret life.

Harry didn't feel right about it anymore. It wasn't fair to Ron or Hermione. They had been honest with him. If he didn't tell Ron soon, it would affect their friendship when the truth finally did come out. And it wasn't fair to people like Colin who obviously had feelings for her. The clack of the train lulled him to sleep.

He felt the speed of the train increase. It flew faster and faster, so fast that it arrived just a few minutes later at Kings Cross Station. A dense fog swirled through the station shrouding the signs and people. Visibility was low, but Harry could make out several figures in black standing at regular intervals along the platform.

As the train pulled to a stop, they sprang into action. The screams of students rang out. Harry's scar burned. Without moving, he found himself standing near the barrier to platforms nine and ten. Something was shaking the ground where he stood.

"Wake up, Harry. We're at the station," Hermione ordered.

Ron laughed at her. "You're a brave witch, waking Harry when he's obviously dreaming. He could hex you before you manage to wake him."

Harry sat up properly and mumbled, "I must have dozed off." He could see outside the window that there were no black figures waiting, only anxious parents, no fog, and just a little steam from the engine. His scar was fine. He'd just dreamed that it was burning. He sighed.

All six of them busied themselves pulling luggage down and gathering their belongings. Soon they'd be on the platform and Ginny would be headed off to the Burrow while Harry went to Grimmauld Place.

He looked at her, trying to memorize. She was laughing with Hermione because they'd mixed up their bags. They looked similar, but Hermione's was much heavier than Ginny's because of all the books.

Harry waved his hand and froze everyone but himself and Ginny. "Harry?" she said, surprised.

Without a word, he pulled her close for a soft kiss. "I'll call you when I can. Keep your mirror with you."

"We'll see each other in a few days, Harry," she said with a warm smile.

"We need to talk, Ginny. We can't keep this secret anymore. We have to figure out how to tell them." Stepping away from Ginny, back to his original spot. He whispered, "I'll miss you." Then took off the charm.

To Be Continued…

Notes to reviewers: Thanks! Your reviews are important to me.

Nightwing509: Thanks for reviewing! They're getting closer to solving the mystery of the box.

Kyntor: Dumbledore definitely took advantage of the situation by waiting, but Snape is the real culprit. I thought about making Dumbledore the one who put him up so you almost made a quarter. Thanks for writing!

athenakitty: The dragons will return. I can't believe someone remembered about visiting the vault. That's in the next chapter. They haven't given up on clearing Sirius' name. Thanks for reviewing!

Lourdes: Niniane's ghost has more to say. The cave is friendly toward Harry for a very good reason. They will be returning there despite the danger. Thanks for writing!

Silver Warrior: Thanks for reviewing! Harry definitely looks like someone she knew. There are some things in the scrolls that he hasn't shared with anyone.

Dumbledore: I'm glad you like the story so far. I know all about that 4 am thing. Sometimes I work on writing this story to put off what I'm really supposed to be doing. OK, lots of time. Procrastination can be fun. I hope you did well on your finals anyway. Thanks for writing!

Jack-A-Roe: After Christmas, they will work on solving the Torch Mystery together. Voldemort just wants all the power he can get. Dumbledore took advantage of the situation to find out something. Thanks for writing!

Mrs.SakuraPotter: Congratulations on graduating! Now that summer is here, I'll have time to catch up on my reading. Thanks for reviewing!

Ted M. Hammett: Thanks for your nice comments. I love Harry/Ginny stories, too. Thanks for reviewing!

Ignorant: Arsenal's season will go down in the history books! Thanks for your nice comments about my story. I think punctuation should be optional. If your meaning is clear, that should be enough. Frolis, eh? Does Frolis have to be human? Sounds a little like a house elf. Thanks for reviewing!

russel can ziwei: Thanks for saying that about J.K. Rowling. I spent the rest of the morning, thinking about fun things to talk over with her. Thanks for your review!

PrincessSkywalkerOrgana: Thanks for reviewing! Harry will tell them eventually.

Gryphonmistress: Niniane will be back. In the real life stories about Merlin, she has many different names, Nimue, Vivian, etc. I decided to use the oldest version I could find because Myrddin is the oldest version of Merlin. She is referred to as the lady of the lake but there is another lady of the lake in the Arthurian legends named Elaine. That lady of the lake marries Lancelot.

Sealing Merlin in a cave and the name Niniane came from the legend, the rest of the story is completely invented. He wasn't really rescued so he could go live in Scotland. And…well I haven't put the rest of it in the story yet, but there is more. Thanks for writing!

brettmp123: Thanks for reviewing! I haven't followed the original storyboard perfectly so it's hard to say how many chapters this will be. I hope to finish it in the next couple of months.

Nathan Postmark: Thanks for writing! I'm glad you like it.

SillyGillie: Thanks for all your nice comments! You picked up on something important. Harry really needs to keep the scrolls to himself. Thanks for your review!

Talix: I'm glad you like the story so far. I appreciate all your kind comments. Thanks for reviewing!

LunaLovegood61: Thanks for reviewing! Now that it's summer, I'll have a chance to read, too.

GhostMagic19: Snape is not in as much trouble as he deserves, but his karma is worsening all the time. Thanks for writing!

hp4ashley2000: Thanks! Now that it's summer, I'll have more time to write.

Stephanie: Thanks for reviewing!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	21. Grimmauld Place

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter. Thanks for taking the time to read and review.

****

Chapter 21

Grimmauld Place

Harry woke up early the next morning to the sound of snoring. It was coming from the empty frame of Phineas Nigellus. He was in the room at Grimmauld Place Ron and he had shared the summer before fifth year. The sun wasn't quite up yet, but Harry decided to go for a run.

Quickly putting on his running clothes and trainers, he opened the front door and came face to face with Mundungus Fletcher and a blast of smelly breath. After a quick greeting, Harry stepped around Mundungus and headed down the stairs. Dung called after him, "Wait! I'm not supposed to let you go alone, arry."

Turning back to look at him, Harry asked, "Are you going to run with me, then?"

Mundungus looked appalled at the idea. Pulling his cloak close around his neck, he whispered loudly, "It's just not safe."

"Maybe it isn't safe, at least, not since you shouted my name." Harry turned around and went back into the house, shutting the door in Mundungus' face. He went to the kitchen and conjured a nice breakfast for himself, eggs, tomatoes, crispy bacon and tea just the way he liked it. Alone at the large table, he ate his food quickly.

After cleaning his dirty dishes, he wandered around the library and the drawing room. From what he could see of Grimmauld Place, Remus or maybe Mrs. Weasley had been busy making the house more cheerful. The grisly vestiges of the Noble House of Black had mostly been removed. In their place were simple, but nice furnishings. From the number of clean mugs on the sideboard, Harry guessed that members of the Order were frequent houseguests.

That's how Harry felt here — like a houseguest. He knew that Remus and he now shared ownership of the house, but it didn't feel like his home without Sirius. Hogwarts felt like home. The Burrow felt like home, but Grimmauld Place felt like someplace he was staying for a while. Maybe he just needed to get used to it.

Remus joined him in the library, looking like his usual rumpled self. "There you are, Harry. Do you always get up so early?" There was so much they didn't know about each other.

Smiling a greeting, Harry said, "I like to take a run in the mornings before breakfast. It clears my head. Of course, lately, I've been running around the Quidditch pitch instead of the lake, but I thought I might be able to keep fit while I'm staying here. Mundungus didn't seem to think it was a good idea to go alone." To Harry this was more proof that no one trusted him to take care of himself. His feelings showed as he asked Remus, " I don't suppose you'd like to go for a run?"

Looking puzzled, Remus said, "After the Death Eaters were caught right in front of this house trying to kidnap you, I don't think you should go out in this neighborhood at all -- at least not without a guard and a good disguise. How about some breakfast? You must be hungry."

Declining the food, but agreeing to keep Remus company, they settled around the kitchen table. They discussed their plans for Gringotts and shopping as well as security measures. They were traveling by floo powder to Fred and George's shop, where they would meet Tonks and Hestia Jones.

Harry wanted to ask how things were between Tonks and Remus, but he decided against it, realizing that he wouldn't like to be questioned about such things himself. So he settled into telling his guardian about Hogwarts. Since it had only been a week since they'd seen each other, there wasn't much to tell.

Back upstairs after breakfast, Harry put on the disguise charms that Moody had taught him. He felt weird, looking in the mirror and seeing a young man with longish blond hair and blue eyes looking back. Somehow, he looked older. But no charm would disguise the lightening bolt on his forehead. Curse scars resisted magic. He pulled his fringe down so it wouldn't give him away. He was sure that no one would recognize him. Soon Remus and he were stepping out of the fireplace in the back workroom of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes.

Harry stepped into the main store while Remus used their fire to speak with someone. The store was covered with Christmas decorations. Every counter had a small tree with a different theme. A fair few customers were browsing through the displays. The twins had enchanted mistletoe to float overhead and a big sign offered personalized mistletoe that could be charmed to follow someone around. Harry swallowed hard when he read the sign.

George was helping a customer near the front window, but Fred saw him looking at the mistletoe. "Can I help you, sir?" he asked politely. "Someone like you probably doesn't need enchanted mistletoe for a Christmas kiss, but it might be fun for the office party."

"Business looks good," said Harry, sounding like himself. Fred still looked confused so he lifted his hair to show his scar and laughed as it dawned on Fred that he was talking to Harry.

Fred clapped him on the shoulder. Looking around to see if anyone was close enough to hear, he said quietly, "The disguise is fab. I'd never have known you. Can't wait to see you at the Burrow, mate." He flicked the enchanted mistletoe with a finger and waggled his eyebrows. "We should have some laughs, eh?"

Remus came out of the back room, brushing soot off his shoulders and wondering how Harry managed to look so clean. He looked at the teenager, who seemed to be growing pale at whatever Fred was telling him. He walked up to them, and said, "We really have to wait for Tonks and Hestia. I wonder what's keeping them?"

Chafing at the lack of freedom, Harry sounded a tad irritable. "Do I really need a guard? The disguise charms worked. How bout I promise to Apparate away if there's trouble." Running away wasn't his style, but if it made the Order happy, he'd do it.

"Here they are," said Remus. The bell on the front door tinkled as two women walked through it. One had brown hair with magenta streaks through it. The other had straight dark hair and rather pinkish cheeks. They both looked stunning.

Staring at the new arrivals appreciatively, Fred said, "They can guard me instead if you like, Harry."

George joined them, "Anything for our financial backer, right Fred?"

Remus broke it up by greeting Tonks and Hestia in more civilized fashion. Harry didn't say much except to greet them politely.

Tonks said, "We'll keep our distance once we leave here. We're just two girls out for a bit of shoppingso you'll have your privacy, Harry."

He smiled and thanked her. He didn't want an audience watching him buy his Christmas presents — one in particular.

Their next stop was Gringotts. The marbled halls were the same as Harry remembered them. He was pretty sure that the goblin leading them to the vault was Griphook, the same one Hagrid and he had followed on his very first trip to the bank. Soon Remus and he were seated in a cart flying through tunnels and past underground lakes. The air was cold and the cart seemed to be out of control, but it eventually stopped deep underground.

Harry scrambled to follow Griphook and Remus down a dark passage. The walls shone with moisture in the light from the goblin's torch. "Wait here," Griphook said in a flat voice. He moved forward.

In the dark, glistening in the torchlight, Harry could make out two large, shining purple eyes. As Griphook drew closer, the face of a dragon came into view. Awakened by the intruders, the beast gave out a fiery roar. While the heat was deflected by the goblin's shield, the force of the blast knocked the goblin to the cold stony floor of the cave.

Harry ran forward and called, "Are you all right?"

"You should get back," Griphook warned although he let Harry help him up off the cold stone.

But Harry knew he had nothing to fear. The dragon turned toward him and Harry stepped closer, quietly putting up a shield and activating the torque around his neck. The passageway flooded with the light emanating from him. The dragon moved closer to Harry and lowered his head.

Remus was amazed. Harry had told him about dealing with dragons in the last couple of months, but this was beyond anything he'd imagined. When he'd visited the vault in the summer, the goblin had to stun the dragon several times in order to pass by.

If Griphook was impressed, he didn't show it. He simply said, "This way, please," and moved toward the huge wooden door that the dragon had been guarding. It looked ancient. Stroking the knotted design on the front of it, the goblin pulled Harry forward and said, "Step into the circle, press your hand to the crest and tell the door to open." When he did a white light shone from the crest, making Harry's hand appear to be lit from within. The massive door went through a series of changes as iron bars and heavy blocks of wood transformed. Eventually they stood in front of an open archway.

Harry conjured a lantern and stepped inside. The cavernous room warehoused many things besides Galleons and business papers. It was just as Harry had hoped. There were old documents and photos of his parents as children. This was the first time he'd ever seen what his grandparents looked like, except for when he looked in the Mirror of Erised and then they had been familiar, but nameless, faces in a group.

Remus and Harry spent most of the morning looking through papers and photos that had belonged to James and Lily. It was entertaining to hear Remus' stories while finding some of their things.

Of course, the vault housed many other items that belonged to Potters through the centuries: ceramics, weapons, jewelry and even furniture. Some seemed truly ancient. There was so much to look through that Harry decided to fill his rucksack with some of the photos, papers and things. He'd have more time to go over them later. Of course, he filled his money pouch, too.

He noticed a plain gold chain in the jewelry case. Most of the pieces displayed inside were too ostentatious to be worn. Their style belonged to a different age, but amongst the bright gems was this thin gold chain. It was just what he was looking for. Now he wouldn't have to ask Remus to take him to a jewelry store. Quietly putting the chain in one of the velvet pouches, Harry turned to Remus and suggested lunch.

Remus agreed. "Do you see anything else you'd like to take with you?" he asked.

"I think that's enough. You could always come back yourself if there is anything we think of later," said Harry, remembering that Remus had visited the vault by himself in the summer. Suddenly curious, he asked, "When you came to the vault last summer, how did you get in? Did you put your hand on the crest and open the vault? How did you get past the dragon?"

Remus laughed and said, "Well, let's seeI came with Griphook. He stunned the dragon and made me hold a red gem of some kind onto the crest which opened the vault in the same way you did today."

"So really anyone could get into this vault if the goblins allowed them," Harry said flatly, looking around at the cavernous vault.

"No one had been down here since your fatheralthough Sirius would have been allowed in if he weren't a wanted criminal." Remus looked lost in thought as the two of them moved toward the archway. When they passed through, the door sealed itself in much the same way as it had opened.

Thankful that the purple eyed, black dragon was still subdued, Remus continued as they walked. "Goblin magic is different from ours. They take an oath to protect the contents of these vaults. They are extremely careful about it. The goblins could not betray the oath to your family even if they wanted to."

"Couldn't someone steal the gem you usedor convince a goblin to let them in? What if they were polyjuiced to look like one of us?" Harry asked.

Glancing at the grim look on the goblin's face, Remus wondered if they could be heard. "A goblin would never be fooled by wizard magic. Their magic is different. And they're an insular group. They don't particularly trust wizards. That vault has probably been safe here for centuries. It's protected by an ancient Blood Charm that no disguise could fool -- even polyjuice."

They moved toward the cart where Griphook was waiting to return them to the main lobby.

Remus and he didn't speak much until they stepped out into the fresh air of Diagon Alley. It had begun to snow lightly. The shop windows were glowing warmly through the light blanket of white. The lampposts were lit as though it were dark outside. Around each one flew fairies showering the shoppers with sparks of red and green. A group of warmly dressed children stood on the steps of Gringotts singing carols.

The lunch crowd at the Leaky Cauldron was interesting. The room harbored a full array of characters from the wizarding world, all dressed in mufflers and scarves to shield them from the winter weather. They stared unabashedly at Remus and Harry as they walked in and took two seats at the bar.

"We'll have two of today's lunch specials, Tom," said Remus. "And two butterbeer extras."

Tom brought them two foamy mugs then disappeared behind the door to the kitchen. Patting his hair to be sure his scar was still covered, Harry asked, "Trying to get me sloshed, Remus?" He'd heard about butterbeer extra. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Tonks and Hestia take a booth on the other side of the room where they would have a view of everything that happened within the pub.

Feeling uneasy with his back to so many people he didn't know, Harry sipped his drink and tried to relax. Walking through Diagon Alley, Harry had felt like they were being followed, but that could easily have been extra guards from the Order instead of Death Eaters. Now he felt like people were staring. He didn't want to sound paranoid so he didn't mention it to Remus.

A small odd looking woman at the end of the bar hadn't taken her eyes off of them. She turned back to her magazine when Harry stared back. Tom returned from the kitchen carrying two plates of greasy fish and chips and a bottle of vinegar which he set in front of them. They settled in to eat.

Behind them a shrill female voice cried out, "Here you sit calmly eating fish and chips while He Who Must Not Be Named is out there striking down innocent people."

Harry choked on his fish as he jumped in surprise. Twisting around to see who was speaking, he noticed that almost everyone in the Leaky Caldron was focusing on the woman. She was dressed in lavender robes and appeared to be in her eighties or nineties. She was wearing ropes of pearls and a large hat covered with flowers and fruit. Her stately appearance was at odds with her stance. She was pointing an umbrella at a short bald man who was trying to eat his lunch. He looked seriously frightened of the petite old woman. Harry had to admit he'd been scared, too, until he realized she wasn't speaking to him.

"II assure youwe are taking things seriously. The Daily Prophet is doing everything we can to help fight the rise of evil. Whyonly this morning, I was telling the editor" The bald man broke off when she narrowed her eyes and poked the umbrella into his chest.

Out of the corner of his eye he noticed a man in dark gray seated near the exit to Diagon Alley who hadn't turned his head toward the scene these people were making. He kept his eyes steadily on Remus and Harry at the bar.

"Don't bother giving me your excuses. The Daily Prophet has become a bad joke. You wasted a whole year spouting whatever drivel Cornelius Fudge told you to print. Now we're in a fine mess. It's happening all over again. And you're too afraid to face the truth. Get back to work. Show some backbone this time."

"Yes, grandmother," the man said quietly. He threw his napkin down on his half-eaten fish and chips and beat a hasty retreat from the pub.

All eyes turned quickly away from the scene although they needn't have bothered. The elderly woman was oblivious to her audience. She seemed completely poised as she took a napkin and dusted off a chair before sitting down and ordering a small sherry from Tom.

Now that the excitement was over, the man in gray seemed to be staring at his food instead of them. He was just another person here for lunch. Harry felt stupid for thinking otherwise.

Remus raised his eyebrow at Harry and explained. "That's old Madeline Prewett. She's Molly Weasley's great aunt. The reporter that just ran out of here was her grandson, Fitzwilliam Prewett. Everyone calls him Fitz. He's been around forever. He's a reporter for the Daily Prophet so it's just as well that he didn't recognize you." Harry smiled at this. The disguise had worked really well so far.

As Harry and Remus stood to leave, the man in the gray cloak followed. Tapping the bricks to enter Diagon Alley the man stood right beside them. Harry saw him pull his wand as they stepped through the archway. Harry responded by pulling his own wand, but didn't use it. Instead he used his left hand to disarm the man who did the oddest thing. He smiled at Harry, then grabbed Remus' arm. Harry cast the time spell and pulled his guardian well away from the stranger. When time returned to normal, the man in the gray cloak disappeared like so much smoke, his face registering surprise at the last second.

They had no time to ponder this odd occurrence. As if some private signal had been unleashed, they were suddenly surrounded by figures in black cloaks. Like in his dream on the train, they were stationed at intervals along the shops of Diagon Alley. "Harry, what's happening?" asked Remus, dodging the stunning spells that were headed their way.

Moving so they were back to back, Harry said, "That man pulled his wand and tried to grab you. He must have given a signal and then Portkeyed away. What do we do now?"

Coming from behind them, Tonks and Hestia answered that by yelling "_Stupefy!_" and dropping two of their assailants. At that, stunners began to fly in every direction. Harry couldn't freeze time with such a large crowd and still maintain his shield so he and Remus ducked and ran behind a stone pillar.

"Who are those guys?" Harry asked, shooting stunners and dropping two more.

"Must be Death Eaters," Remus answered also sending off a round of spells.

"They don't have on the masks," Harry said, his next stunner sent one of the black figures flying into the window of the Cauldron Shop across the street. Stacks of cauldrons and shattered glass scattered over the snowy cobblestone street.

Tonks must have somehow signaled for help because soon Aurors were Apparating around them. Not realizing that Harry and Remus were fighting with them, but seeing Harry's powerful stunner knock someone through a window, two of the Aurors targeted them.

Seeing these unknown Aurors aim their wands at Harry, Remus instinctively threw himself in the way. While shielding Harry in this manner, one of them hit Remus in the back with a stunner, dropping him to the ground.

Harry fell beside him, using a shield to block a second spell that sped towards them on a beam of bright blue light. He held onto his guardian for all he was worth and Apparated away. Harry didn't know if he could do it. But no one had ever said you couldn't Apparate with a second person and he'd watched Voldemort disappear with Bellatrix LaStrange at the Department of Mysteries last June, so he tried.

They reappeared in the library of Grimmauld Place. Harry breathed a sigh of relief that he had been able to get them away from Diagon Alley, but he paled when he saw Remus' unconscious face. He was almost white including his lips. He stretched Remus out on the sofa. Leaning in he could detect shallow breathing. Harry pocketed his wand and said, "_Enervate!_"

Remus' eyes fluttered open although his coloring didn't improve. His head shifted on the cushion revealing a growing streak of dark red blood. "Get help," he said softly before his eyes closed again.

Realizing that Remus must have hit his head when he fell on the cobbled street, Harry conjured a blanket to cover him before going to the kitchen to floo someone. But who? He wasn't sure he was supposed to use the floo network. Last year everyone had been so worried about it being watched. He pulled his mirror out and called Ginny.

She was in the kitchen of the Burrow when she heard a noise coming from her pocket. Looking nervously at the twins and Ron who were seated at the table, she excused herself and stepped outside onto the back porch before answering Harry's call.

Harry explained the situation and Ginny promised to get her mother as soon as possible. Running back inside, she found her mother sorting laundry. "You have to go to Grimmauld Place right now!" she said. "I haven't time to explain, but Harry called and said that Remus is hurt and needs your help."

Molly looked at her daughter and scowled. "We're not supposed to use the floo network, dear. Not unless it's a dire emergency. Someone should have explained that to Harry and apparently to you."

"You can Apparate, can't you?" Ginny said worriedly. "Just go. You can scold me later."

Seeing the amount of distress her daughter was in, Molly agreed. Harry must need help just as Ginny had said. Maybe it was a dire emergency. She looked around for her cloak. Ginny held it out to her. "Just go. I'll take care of everything here."

Seconds later she walked through the front door and called to Harry. She found them in the library. Harry was trying to get Remus to wake up enough to drink a Pepper-up Potion.

She walked in to see a handsome blond boy leaning over Remus Lupin with a potion vial in his hand. Seeing her startled look, Harry changed his appearance back to normal. Words rushed out of him. "You got the message! He needs to go to St. Mungo's? Or should we take him to Hogwarts?"

"Let me give him a once over and then see," Molly said calmly. She ran her wand over him, uttering a first aid incantation. What she saw she didn't like, but she didn't want to panic Harry. "I think you're right, he would be better off at St. Mungo's."

"How can we get him there?" Harry asked, distraught. He would have taken him there directly if he knew how.

"We could simply floo there if we weren't in secret headquarters. We could Apparate there, but I can't Apparate with two people, let alone three."

Harry looked grim and determined. "I can. We'll meet you in the lobby, Mrs. Weasley." Pulling Remus close to him, they disappeared.

"Remarkable!" Molly said to the empty room. Then she joined them.

The lobby at St. Mungo's was full of casualties. The attack in Diagon Alley had been widespread. If their purpose was to viciously attack innocent people, they certainly had. Looking around, Harry saw many families with small children who had sustained injuries.

Molly found an orderly to take care of Remus. He'd have to wait his turn to see the Mediwizards, but Molly reassured Harry that Remus would be all right.

Tonks and Hestia showed up while they were waiting. They were bringing in more victims of the attack. After explaining what had happened to Remus, Harry said, "Who were they? They didn't wear Death Eater masks."

Hestia answered, "We're assuming that they were still Death Eaters. The ones I took into Magical Law Enforcement Headquarters all had the Dark Mark on their arm. Guess they're changing the uniform or something. Most of them seem to be foreign."

"Did you call all those Aurors in? Why did they shoot at us?" Harry asked remembering that the Aurors seemed to arrive out of nowhere.

Tonks didn't say anything. She seemed completely focused on the unconscious Remus.

"Some were already on duty in Diagon Alley. Some we called in when you disarmed the bloke in the gray cloakDon't suppose you could describe him for us?" Hestia asked. She looked none the worse for having just fought a pitched battle. Her straight black hair was perfectly in place.

Tonks looked up and said in a low voice. "Sometimes Aurors shoot first and ask questions later. They must have seen you firing off stunners and thought you were one of the attackers. You pack quite a punch, Harry."

Smiling absently at the compliment, Harry said, "It's a good thing they haven't authorized Aurors to use Unforgivableswould it be all right if we don't mention that I was there today? I mean I was wearing a disguise."

Hestia answered, "That's the last thing we need. The Daily Prophet reporting that an Auror tried to stun the Boy Who Lived in the middle of a Death Eater attack."

"Has he woken at all?" Tonks asked, focusing on Remus again.

Harry felt guilty for his attention wandering when Remus needed him. "Sorryyes. He woke up when I first tried to revive him. Just enough to tell me to get help. Sorry I didn't know what to do. I wasted time. I should have realized that I should just bring him here."

Molly protested. "Nonsense, Harry dear. You couldn't have known. I'm glad I could help. Only, next time don't use the floo to talk to Ginny. The floo network could be watched. Promise?"

"I promise," Harry said, quickly deciding against telling her about the mirrors. Soon the matron came and took Remus in to be seen. It was a long afternoon. Mrs. Weasley stayed for a while, but she had to get back to the Burrow. Tonks and Hestia left for the Ministry to give their statements and file paperwork.

The Healer allowed Harry to stay in the room with Remus except while he was treating him. So close to the full moon, they were worried that his nervous system couldn't take the stress of his head injury. Harry sat in the waiting room next to a wizard in black business-like robes while he waited. When the gentleman stood up he left his Daily Prophet on the table in the waiting room.

Out of curiosity, Harry lifted it up. It was the afternoon edition. He unfolded it to see a picture of the devastation in Diagon Alley. Storefronts and street carts were smashed. Displays were strewn across the narrow main street. Awnings had collapsed. And in the center of the street a little stuffed bear drew Harry's attention. It was obviously the worse for wear. One of the ears was a bit floppy from being chewed. He hoped its owner was all right. Since Harry and Remus had left the fight after only a few minutes, he was surprised by the amount of devastation.

The news report, filed by Fitz Prewett, gave the facts and figures for the lunchtime attack. He detailed carefully the number of injured bystanders and the amount of damage to the various businesses.

At least the Death Eaters had been shooting stunners instead of Unforgivables. Their purpose must have been to frighten people, make them feel unsafe. A photo of the Dark Mark shining over the Leaky Cauldron entrance seemed to bear witness to that thought.

The only fatality had been one of the attackers. All together, the Aurors apprehended sixteen Death Eaters. They were identified as mostly Eastern European. Harry wondered if Voldemort was having a difficult time recruiting British wizards. But all thoughts of the attack and the war were set aside as the Mediwizard invited Harry back into his guardian's room.

That evening, they were all back at Grimmauld Place, including Remus who had responded well to the Healer's treatment. St. Mungo's was crowded with casualties from the attack so Remus was sent home with instructions to rest.

Harry was surprised to find several Order members making themselves at home in the kitchen. Someone he didn't recognize was cooking while the others talked around the table. When Harry and Remus came through the door, they all stopped talking. They greeted everyone politely, but the room was still quiet as if no one knew what to say. Excusing himself, Harry left to put away his rucksack. As he stepped into the hall, he heard someone say, "So that's himself is it? Seems pretty normal to me."

Harry hurried upstairs and shut the door behind him. Nothing seemed normal about his life. He pulled out his mirror and flopped down on his bed, hoping Ginny had time to talk.

She answered with flour on her nose. "I can only talk foreight minutes. That's when the next batch of biscuits will be done," she said.

They settled into telling each other about their days until a knock on Harry's door interrupted them. They said goodbye and Harry said, "Come in."

Remus opened the door and said, "I thought I heard voices in here. Were you talking to someone?"

Thinking it was none of Remus' business, Harry shrugged and said, "Shouldn't you be resting? I'm all aloneexcept for Phineas Nigellus, of course." He waved his hand at the empty painting.

Remus understood. "Dumbledore's idea, I'm afraid," he said pointing to the painting. "Would you feel better in another room? We have loads of empty bedrooms. Maybe you need some better privacy. I remember going home for the summer when I was in school. Oh, I missed my friends, but it was always nice to have some privacy."

"You'd do that. Let me change rooms. I mean, even though Dumbledore thinks I should be watched twenty-four, seven." Harry looked at his guardian gratefully.

"Dumbledore probably knows everything that goes on anyway, Harry. He doesn't miss much." Remus thought the teenager looked a little stricken. What did he have to hide?

Harry was tempted to grab his bag and his rucksack and say, Lead on. I really don't like bunking in with Phineas.' But he decided against it, reasoning that Dumbledore was already suspicious of him. Here was a chance to prove himself. Besides, he hated to be a bother so he said, "No thanks. This is fine."

Remus gave him an odd look, and then told him that dinner would be ready soon and left him alone.

Dinner with the Order was loud and boisterous. Several of the Aurors who had helped with the attack on Diagon Alley were there. Hestia and Tonks sat on either side of Remus who was across from Harry. Remus looked pale, but kept saying he felt fine. Professor Moody sat at the far end of the table.

Listening to the banter of Order members and Aurors, Harry was struck again with the thought that this fight was not really about him. Dwelling on the prophecy made him feel like it was, but listening to their dinner conversation made him realize that this war wasn't just Harry versus Voldemort.

Someday the fight might come down to just such a confrontation, but the real fight was about the wizarding world choosing sides. One wizard, even one with the vast power and evil genius of Voldemort could not take over the wizarding world by himself. He had to win others to his side, either with the false promise of power or by coercion.

And that's what the Order was fighting against, the coercive force of an evil monster. Voldemort wasn't human any more. Those people in the waiting room at St. Mungo's, old men and small children, they had no hope of fighting him or his Death Eaters. They needed someone strong to defend them. People like the ones seated around this table.

Moody gave the crowd a solemn stare and stood. Lifting his glass, he said, "To absent friends. May we always remember their sacrifice. And may their deaths be avenged."

There was a murmured echo of "absent friends" among those seated around the table. The Order members raised their glasses at Moody's familiar toast. Not for the first time, Harry realized that Moody must have seen a lifetime of suffering beyond what Harry would ever know.

That's what any Auror faced. Years of standing strong for those who couldn't defend themselves entailed a personal sacrifice. They gave up time spent with their own loved ones and sometimes they gave up their life.

Harry admired them more that night than he ever had as he listened to them telling stories and teasing each other. There was Tonks with her clumsiness and her determination, Hestia with her cool intelligence and Mad-Eye Moody who'd given his whole life and some of his body parts to keep the wizarding world safe. He was proud to sit at the same table with them, passing the rolls.

When he was ready, he'd help put an end to this particular fight. Maybe that would give them a chance to be with their families. He vowed to redouble his efforts to prepare as he settled in to listen to the adult's conversation.

The evening went well, but Remus and Harry really didn't have a chance to talk privately until the next day when they took a Portkey to Godric's Hollow to see Sirius' memorial.

Harry hadn't known what to expect. No one ever told him anything about his parent's home except that it had been destroyed when Voldemort attacked.

It was a dreary day. An icy rain mixed with snow fell on their shoulders as they arrived. A long, overgrown drive led to the burned out shell of what must have been Harry's first home. Saplings and bushes were growing within what had probably once been the kitchen.

Harry looked at Remus who pulled out a large black umbrella and began to walk up the drive. Harry kept pace with him, but didn't speak. They walked past the remains of the house into the back garden. It was huge, larger than a Quidditch pitch, and it bordered the countryside. There were fields and forests as far as Harry could see. It appeared to be undeveloped land, no sign of Muggles or farms. He wished he'd paid more attention to the deed in the vault yesterday.

Continuing past the overgrown garden, Harry saw a stone gate with a wrought iron grating. Above the entry it simply said, "Potter." They entered to find a graveyard full of ancient looking memorials. Passing by many marked with the names of Potter ancestors, they went to one in the corner, a modern looking stone with Sirius Black carved on it.

"I thought you'd like to see this, Harry. I took the liberty of ordering the stone." Remus looked solemn.

"You had every right to," Harry said quietly. The rather plain marble stone read, Sirius Black -- Beloved Friend and Guardian.'

"Of course, he's not really here, but I wanted to mark his passing somehow. And if we had been able to recover his body, he would have wanted to be laid to rest near your parents. The Potters really took Sirius in when he split with his family. Both your grandparents and James became his surrogate family. So it's onlyit seemed only right."

Harry looked at the stones nearby. Of course, James and Lily Potter. Why hadn't he expected it? He should have realized that their memorials would be here, too. He couldn't speak.

Remus followed his stricken look to the stones over his friends' graves. He should have known that no one had ever taken the trouble to bring Harry to visit his parent's memorials. The Dursleys would never have thought about it. He put his hand on Harry's shoulder and said, "I'm sorry. I should have realized that you'd never been here before."

Remus left Harry alone in the private graveyard for a while, waiting for him at the front of the house. They returned to Grimmauld Place in relative silence. Harry excused himself, saying he had some things to do in his room.

Harry closed the door to his room and threw himself across his bed. He spoke with Ginny for an hour. She was pretending to be in her room taking a nap. Privacy at the Burrow wasn't that easy to come by.

After that, Harry felt better. He pulled out one of the scrolls he'd found in the cave and began to work some magic. He'd kept the content of the scrolls a secret, even from his friends. This particular scroll had an interesting spell on it. Harry hoped he'd done it correctly, but he wouldn't really know until he tried it out with Ginny.

His magic had changed since the summer. He wasn't using his wand very much, unless there were people around. Dumbledore had cautioned him to keep his growing abilities to himself, especially his ability to do Wandless Magic. But Dumbledore didn't know how easy magic had become for Harry. He could feel the magic move through him. Even without saying an incantation aloud, Harry could direct a spell by simply letting the intention flow through him and out his fingertips. The spell he was working today was really complicated, but when he was finished he had to admire his handiwork.

Remus knocked on his door and called "Dinner!"

Harry put the scrolls back in his carved box along with the velvet pouch and chain he'd taken from the vault yesterday. Then he joined Remus and the others for dinner.

The conversation around the table was lively and cheerful. Most of the Order members were getting in the Christmas spirit. They had stories about their missions, some scary, some funny. Harry listened mostly; full of his own thoughts as he had been the night before.

His silence didn't go unnoticed. Remus vowed to himself that he would find a way to help Harry open up. Perhaps this called for drastic measures.

When most of the Order was either out on patrol or asleep and Tonks had gone home, Remus asked Harry to go out back with him. They walked across the narrow yard to a small shed. "I won't see you on Christmas, so I'm giving you your present now," Remus said, opening the door and lighting a lamp.

"Erthanks. I have something for you upstairs. Maybe I should summon it here." He'd purchased a set of Magical Mystery Books for his guardian the day they met for lunch in Hogsmeade. They were interactive so you could use your powers of deduction to solve the mystery as you read the stories. Harry seemed a little unsure as they entered the cobwebbed storage space. The place was dusty and filled with clutter and old furnishings draped in dirty white sheeting.

Remus laughed. "You can give it to me later. Your present was too large to bring in the house." He flicked his wand to remove one of the sheets, revealing a large motorcycle with a broad seat.

Eyes wide with excitement, Harry ran his hands over the handlebars and leather seat. "Wow! This is great."

Remus smiled at him and spent a few minutes explaining how the motorbike worked. Then he sighed and said, "Don't choke up on me, butyou should know that this gift is from Sirius, too." Remus choked up himself as he saw Harry's back stiffen. Clearing his throat, he said, "I'm sure it's only right to tell you. When Hagrid brought this back to him last spring, Sirius planned to fix it up over the summer and give you this himself for Christmas, but" His voice trailed off.

A few deep breaths later, Harry turned and said, "Of course, I'd want to know. Thanks, Remus and" His voice faltered. Silence fell between them. Then Harry gave a determined nod. Brightening his tone, he said, "When do I get to ride it?"

"I had Arthur Weasley check it out. It should be in good form. We can take it out sometime soon. Maybe Portkey away from here first and then take it for a spin."

Although it was late, Remus and Harry settled in front of the library fire. After a couple of games of wizard's chess, Remus pulled a bottle out of the desk and filled two glasses, offering one of them to Harry.

Harry took the glass and sniffed it. Obviously, this was hard liquor of some kind. "What is this, Remus?"

"Firewhiskey, Harry. Don't tell me you've never had any!" Remus figured by fifth year, someone would be smuggling in Firewhiskey. Or things had really changed since his Hogwarts days.

"I'm not much of a drinker," Harry said, taking a little taste. He'd never say so, but he detested Seamus' rum punch.

"I could make you some hot chocolate if you'd rather. I just thoughtyou're expected to fight in this war like you're a grown up, maybe you'd like a grown up drink."

"When you put it that way, I guess I should try it." Harry took another sip. It tasted dreadful and burned his throat. "They're all really brave, aren't they? The people in the Order."

"I guess they are" Remus answered, hoping that if he didn't say much, then Harry would say what was on his mind.

Harry took another sip. Grimacing, he put the glass down. "Any one of them could be giving up their life. Anytime they go on patrol; they're putting their life on the line. Where do they find the courage?"

"Where do you find yours?" Remus asked, thinking sadly that Harry always had life and death matters on his mind. In the firelight, he looked so young. Remus thought, He should be thinking about girlfriends and Quidditch.'

Harry looked at his guardian who was obviously getting angry at the thought of how this war was affecting people. He said, "What people think is courage is simply facing up to the inevitable. I'm in this fight because I have no choice. If I don't meet it head on, I won't survive."

"This isn't just your fight, Harry. We're all in this together. We have to find a way to trust each other."

"Even Snape?" Harry and Remus had decided not to repay him for the Truth Taffy incident.

"Snivellus may be a special case, but you should trust Dumbledore. Without him, we have no hope." Remus knew he was skating close to the real problem.

"Dumbledore doesn't trust me, Remus. He's worried I'll become a dark wizard when I grow up."

"That's not true. He's helping you. He wouldn't do that if he thought you were becoming dark." Remus looked shocked.

Harry shrugged. "Maybe not. But he hasn't let me help with the Order since Halloween. I think he's at least wondering if my Occlumency is working."

"And you're sure that it is," Remus stated it like it was a fact.

Harry nodded. "How can I trust someone who doesn't trust me?"

"You have a point, but sometimes you just have to take a risk. Have a little faith in people, Harry. I know it must be difficult, given your background. But you can't shut yourself off from people, you have to try to trust them."

Remus leaned back in his chair and drained his glass. He was thinking about the people he had trusted in his life. All but one had proved worthy.

Ignoring his glass of liquor, Harry conjured himself a steaming mug of hot chocolate and popped one of the marshmallows into his mouth. "I trust loads of people, my friends at school, you, Professor Moody. And I guess I still trust Dumbledorebut why does he trust Snape more than he trusts me?"

Pouring himself a second glass, Remus shook his head. "The Snape situation is a mystery. We may never know why. I don't think it's fair to say he trusts Snape more although I was a little worried when he allowed Snape to question you under the influence of that Truth TaffyI'm glad you have good friends at school. If you want some advice, Harryyou should keep your friends close. Don't let anything come between you."

"You mean secrets. You've been talking to HermioneHonestly that girl never gives up."

"Do you have secrets from Hermione?"

Harry laughed out loud. "I should hope so."

Remus smiled. "I guess that means you don't tell Ginny stuff either."

Looking away, Harry said, "I tell Ginny Weasley most things. She'sdifferent." His tone was reverential.

"Is she your girlfriend?" Remus asked, trying the direct approach.

Letting out a long sigh, Harry answered, "Yesonly no one knows except us and now you." He poked at the marshmallows on top of his hot chocolate. "I have to figure out how to tell Ron. I don't suppose you have any suggestions."

"Just tell the truth, Harry. They'll find out in the end anyway." He shook his head and added, "Six older brothersall powerful wizardsyou are brave."

Harry grinned and they both laughed.

They continued to talk for a while, about school and friends and visiting the Memorial. Remus grew silent staring at the fire in the hearth. Hearing his breathing become even, Harry banked the fire and covered Remus with a comforter before leaning back in his own chair to dream of roaring through the sky on his new motorbike.

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To Be Continued

A/N: Christmas at the Burrow is next Thanks to everyone who reads and especially to those who review. It really does help motivate. Thanks!

Nightwing 509: Glad you liked the snow fight. It's over 90 degrees here so writing about snow is refreshing. Thanks for reviewing!

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Kelly: Good to hear from you again. I agree that Harry is bold and brave, but too foolish sometimes. But it does make him an endearing character. Thanks for reviewing!

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Stephanie: They'll sort things out eventually. Thanks for writing a review!

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Lourdes1: Thanks for all your kind comments. I know what you mean about having to re-read to pick up the threads of the story. I will try to update more frequently since it's summer. Thanks for writing!

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athenakitty: You're as curious as a real cat. I'll let the reader decide for themselves about the underwear. Draco and Snape are in for more difficulties. One of the characters you mentioned just might die in this story, but I can't tell you which one(s). Thanks for reviewing!

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Ignorant: Frolis needs his own story. Perhaps, "What the House Elf Saw" or "Why the House Elf Sings the Blues" Thanks for writing!

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aschowin: I'm glad you like it so far. We're almost to the point where it becomes clear what the torch would be able to do. Thanks for reviewing!

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Enter The Lion: That's a really good guess about the torch, but not quite it. For your sake, we won't let Ginny boss anyone around in this story. Well, maybe Ron. Thanks for writing!

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Wytil: I'll work on it. Thanks for reviewing!

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koyetsu: Maybe you're right. I've been wrong beforemany times. Thanks for reviewing.

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Gryphonmistress: Thanks for writing a review! The way I see it, it's more like Harry steps out of time briefly. The people around him are frozen in time, but he is free for a moment. Also, the spell is limited and too difficult for most wizards.

Snape really should watch his back since he does little to endear himself to anyone. I'm trying to work faster since it's summer. No pressure

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Iluvatar: Woohoo! Thanks for writing!

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asdf: I appreciate it. Thanks for reviewing!

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skeeter 07: I'm glad you like it. Thanks for writing a review!

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Nathan Postmark: Thanks for saying that! I appreciate it.

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techno04: Thanks for all of your reviews! A special thanks for putting the story past the 200 mark! Oh, and Ron was at breakfast, but he had his mouth full of food. I totally agree about Cho. She's history. And I think it was Spiderman, but don't go by me. I'm often wrong.

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ricksterinps: I'm impressed! You must be a speed reader. Thanks for reviewing!

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hpforever: Thanks for reviewing! It's really a lot to read at this point. And thank your brother for recommending the story. I appreciate it.

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solar1: Thanks for reviewing!

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Mrs. Sakura Potter: Good luck at college. Thanks for all the nice things you said. I will update soon. Thanks for writing!

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Craaminator#9: Thanks for saying you find the story believable. I'll keep trying. Thanks for reviewing!

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Silver Warrior: The Weasley reactions are in the next chapter, but there will be more reactions when they get back to school. Thanks for reviewing!

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GhostMagic: I'm glad you like long chapters. In fact this chapter and the next one were supposed to be one chapter, but it became just huge so now it's two. As you saw in this installment, Harry does trust Remus enough to confide in him, but there are some things Harry is still keeping to himself. Thanks for reviewing!

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Bluemoon: Thanks for all your nice comments! And for wishing me luck. I need all the luck I can get. Thanks for reviewing!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	22. Christmas at the Burrow

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter. Thanks for taking the time to read and review. I enjoy reading them!

As a big distraction from writing, a mother raccoon and her litter have settled in the crawlspace under our house. The little ones are cute, but the mother is wild and scary.

This Chapter has a Fluff Alert!

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Chapter 22

Christmas at the Burrow

Down by the riverbank, a thick accumulation of freshly fallen snow coated the stark branches of a grove of trees. Further downstream, more snow lightened a stand of firs. Leaning over the railing on the bridge, Harry could hear the muted rush of running water under the icy covering of the river. Against the pink and blue of the early morning sky, he watched a flight of birds stretch their wings.

Tonks' voice broke the calm. "We should get moving. There's quite a ways to go," she said, stomping her booted feet to warm them.

"Stillit is quite a sight," Harry said, smiling at her.

"Never took you for the sunrise type, Harry," Tonks said. "Next it will be long walks on beaches and"

Silencing her with a glare that said, "Don't be ridiculous," Harry popped up the kickstand and threw his leg over the motorcycle. The loud roar of the engine blared out over the wintery scene. Zipping up his leather jacket, he invited Tonks to join him. He gestured with his hand and said, "Let's go then." She sat behind him on the wide seat and the two of them rode through the snow briefly before taking to the sky in a spray of fresh white powder.

In the days after the Diagon Alley attack, Harry had spent his time learning how to drive Sirius' flying motorcycle. The vehicle had all sorts of special charms on it to make it operate, but its most important function was to give Harry a chance for some fun. The werewolf wasn't really keen on flying so Tonks had been recruited to be Harry's tutor. She taught him basic bike safety and how to fly in inclement weather. She was the one who insisted on him wearing a leather jacket. "For protection," she said. Harry took to flying the motorcycle like he'd done it all of his life.

Two days before Christmas, they went their separate ways, Remus to Wolfhaven Inn and Harry to the Burrow. The time spent with his guardian at Order Headquarters had changed Harry's perspective on a few things, but he was looking forward to spending time with the Weasleys. Which brought Harry and Tonks to their early morning ride through the Devon countryside toward Ottery St. Catchpole. Before dawn, they took a Portkey away from Grimmauld Place, planning to ride the bike the rest of the way.

Arriving at the front door of the Burrow, they were freezing cold. Harry recast the warming charms on them both as Tonks danced around to try to warm up. She knocked and called out for someone to let them in.

"All right, all right. Keep your knickers on," called an unfamiliar voice. The door opened to reveal Charlie Weasley. "Hello Harry. Who's your friend?" he asked, giving Tonks an admiring look.

Harry introduced them quickly, looking anxiously over Charlie's shoulder into the kitchen. Tonks changed her looks to shoulder length soft brown hair and clear blue eyes and gave Charlie a quick hug. "Nymphadora! I should have known," he said enthusiastically.

At Harry's surprised look, Tonks said, "We went to school together although I was a Ravenclaw." She gave Charlie a superior look.

Harry looked her up and down. "I'm sorry to stare. Iit's just. Is this what you really look like? I mean yournatural appearance."

"Oh, no. I really look like this." She changed herself into a miniature troll with lots of warts on her nose, then changed back. "But the boys all like this look better so what can a girl do?"

Charlie laughed at her. "Same old Tonks. Quit trying to scare Potter. People inside are dying to see him. Go straight on through to the lounge." He stepped aside to let them in.

The Burrow's kitchen was just the same. Dishes were washing themselves in the sink. Knitting needles were hard at work. The clock hands were crowded around the lounge setting so Harry headed for the next room.

Ron and George were playing Exploding Snap by the fire. Ginny was sitting in a chair with her legs tucked under her, leaning over her sketchbook. Bill was stretched out on the sofa. A cheerful cry of greeting went up as Harry entered the room. Dropping his bag, he leaned against the back of a chair and smiled widely.

Smoothing her apron as she came down the stairs, Mrs. Weasley said cheerfully, "Hello, Harry. And Tonks, dear! Please sit down. Ginny, run get those biscuits you made, dear." Briefly smiling as she passed him, Ginny left the room.

Mrs. Weasley forced Harry into a cushy chair and thrust a mug of spiced cider into his hand. Tonks and Charlie settled near the fire and began to speak animatedly, but they were too far away for Harry to hear. Ginny came back with a plate of chocolate biscuits. Finally meeting his gaze, she arched an eyebrow and asked, "Care for something sweet, Harry?"

Fred appeared at his elbow. "Ahhhow can anyone say no to that?" he asked, grabbing a biscuit off the plate in Ginny's hand.

Holding a biscuit in his hand, Harry gave Fred's shirt a closer inspection. It was a brightly colored short sleeved shirt covered with enchanted palm trees waving in an imaginary breeze. Every so often a bikini clad beauty would run from one tree to the next as though she was trying not to be seen.

"Next time we'll hire a model who isn't so shy," Fred said in answer to Harry's stare. Pulling on the sleeve, he continued, "Available for three galleons. Great for your next vacation in Spain."

The game of Snap exploded with its usual smoky warning, showering Ron with ashes. His face slightly sooty, he moved over near Harry and took a biscuit.

Over Ron's head, Harry gave Ginny a questioning look. She answered with a shake of her head. Apparently these weren't made with the Cheering Charm recipe. Ginny moved toward Bill who was motioning to her to pass the plate around. Ron followed.

As she reached the sofa, Bill sat up and ruffled Ginny's hair. "You make the best biscuits, little one," he said, taking a handful. She didn't seem to mind Bill calling her little' although Harry suspected the twins wouldn't get away with it. He wished he could ruffle her hair.

George walked over wearing his green dragon's hide jacket. Without preamble, he pulled Harry out of his seat and over to the window. Once there he said, "Harry, my man, might I have a word?"

Shrugging and looking around him, Harry said, "Yes, George. You have my full attention." Fred appeared at his side again, making Harry worry for a moment that the twins had finally noticed he couldn't take his eyes off their sister. He soon found out they had other business on their mind.

"Ronniekins mentioned that you've been getting more female attention than you desire," George began.

Fred said, "In fact, Ron says you've been having to beat them off with a stick. Is this true?"

Exasperated at this subject, Harry said, "Of course it's not true. What're you on about, Ron?"

Chewing his biscuit, Ron piped up. "Susannah Martin, Hannah Abbott, all of the third year Gryffindor girls and that little tart from Slytherin who keeps her shirt unbuttoned." He looked to see Ginny's reaction, but she seemed unconcerned.

"We'll get right to the point," said George.

"Too late for that," muttered Harry.

Fred smiled, "We have a new product called Repel Gel. You comb it through your hair."

"And there are no side effects," George said.

"At least none that we've discovered yet," Fred added.

George nodded solemnly, "I know what you're thinking, Harry. You're wondering if it's anything like that Truth Taffy. But I'm sure you just got a bad batch."

Fred interrupted. "We've taken it off the market, pending further tests." Both twins nodded sincerely.

Harry looked at one and then the other incredulously. "So you want me to wear some gunk in my hair in the hopes that it will repel the opposite sexFrankly, I don't see the marketing possibilities here. And if I wanted to repel women, wouldn't it be easier to just borrow your jacket, George?" He smiled charmingly to take the sting away. His comment set off a wave of snickering throughout the room.

George feigned a pained expression. "That was cold, Harry. And I'm standing here trying to help you with your little problem."

"I don't see it as much of a problem, George, but thanks, I guess. I really have no interest in repelling women." Harry grinned.

"Good to know," said Fred.

"Final word?" asked George. As Harry nodded, George turned to his sister, "Ginny! Have I mentioned that you're my favorite sister? We have a new product."

"You want a taste of the bat bogey hex?" she asked.

"Point taken." He turned to Fred and said, "I think we have to admit defeat on this one."

Fred nodded solemnly. "Harry's right. Women Repellant would have a very limited market. I'm afraid it's back to the laboratory on our line of hair products."

Harry settled into a chair across from Ginny by the fire hoping for a quiet talk. Instead she asked, "When do I get to see this flying motorcycle you're so happy about?" She was loud enough to set off a rash of questions from the Weasley men. All of them wanted a turn as soon as possible. Throwing on scarves and coats, they headed outside.

Everyone took turns two at a time riding the motorbike through the huge fluffy snowdrifts around the Burrow. The motorcycle was good on any terrain and charmed for safety so it didn't matter much that the twins' delight in spraying snow at people with a sharp turn usually resulted in one or both of them flying off the bike. If it was a Muggle motorcycle, one of them would probably have been killed, but Sirius' bike was charmed for more than just flying.

Harry threw his head back laughing at their last crash. "That better not have hurt the bike," he shouted. Offering George his hand to pull him out of the snow, Harry said, "I think we've tested the Crash Cushion Charm feature quite enough for one dayMaybe it's just as well, I haven't shown you two how this thing flies."

"We haven't even seen it fly," said Ron pointedly.

"Would you like to take it up with me?" asked Harry, dusting the snow off the seat. "It's loads more comfortable than a broom."

Glancing at Ginny not too subtly, Ron said, "Ummaybe someone else should be first."

Without responding to his comment, Harry said, "C'mon, Ron." He thought maybe now would be a good time to tell Ron about Ginny without the twins and her grown up brothers around. They sped down the lane and took to the air with a blast of snow and a roar from the engine.

"There's something I've been wanting to tell you!" shouted Harry as they flew toward the meadow hidden by the apple orchard. It was difficult to be heard over the enchanted motorcycle.

Ron was confused. He thought Harry said, "Ears sing eyes smell you." He knew that couldn't be right so he shouted in reply, "Can't hear you, mate."

The only word Harry really caught was "mate" which he took to be a prompt for him to continue. "I think you should know that Ginny and I have started going out," said Harry loudly, then waited for the explosion.

Still unable to hear properly, Ron stopped trying. He reasoned that if Harry had anything important to say, he would tell him on the ground. So Ron just shouted, "This is bloody brilliant!" as the two of them turned around to fly back to the Burrow.

Thinking Ron had just said he thought it was brilliant that Ginny and he were dating, Harry relaxed. Weeks of worry melted away as he marveled at his friend's ability to understand and accept him. After a few more minutes in the air, they landed. Harry turned to Ron with a warm smile.

Ron jumped off the bike and shouted enthusiastically, "Thanks. This is turning out to be a great holiday." Grabbing Ginny's arm unceremoniously, he led her toward the bike and said, "It's her turn."

Harry turned the bike around and helped Ginny climb on behind him. To Ron he said, "Thanks, Ron. You'rejust thanks." Feeling exhilarated, he sped off with Ginny. The worst was over. If he had Ron's support, then he could win over the rest of the family. Ginny bit her lip to keep from squealing at his sudden acceleration of speed. She grabbed Harry tightly to keep from flying off the back of the bike as they suddenly took flight.

Ron watched the two of them take off looking like they were having a thrilling time. He shook his head as he turned to the twins and said, "Those twowe can all see how happy they are when they're together."

Fred threw his arm around Ron and said, "Couldn't agree more, Ronniekins. We have some ideas that might help."

"Some products that are new to the market," George said, sounding business like.

"One of a kind."

"Perfectly legal."

Realizing that the twins' ideas might be his best chance, Ron gave a determined nod.

Tonks left after lunch to go back to Grimmauld Place. In the afternoon, they played Quidditch. Charlie and Harry played opposing Seekers and they became very competitive chasing around after the Snitch. Harry had brought a real Snitch with him. He'd found it in his parent's vault. In the end Harry caught the Snitch and Charlie spent the evening good naturedly trying to convince everyone that Harry had somehow enchanted it. He demanded a rematch.

As Harry closed his eyes that night, he reflected on the day. Everything had gone well, although Harry never found a chance to talk to Ron or Ginny alone. The Weasley household was warm and fun. Like the beautiful layer of frosty, fluffy snow that covered the stream he'd watched in the morning, the time spent relaxing in this caring family made the world seem beautiful. But underneath, the water was still flowing; events were still rushing forward to an unknown conclusion. Tomorrow would be time enough to think about that. He fell into a dreamless sleep.

The following morning, Harry woke early and realized that he could go for a run now that he was at the Burrow. He dressed quietly and let himself outside wearing a Disillusionment Charm. The whole house was asleep and if anyone had made it through the wards to watch the house, they wouldn't see anything except the door opening and closing. He stuck to the bare spots on the road so there wouldn't be any snowy footprints. Moody's training had taught him to try to think of every possibility.

The air was clear and crisp as Harry ran along. Low clouds along the horizon looked gray and a fog rolled off a small stream as he ran over a stone bridge. The sky was just lightening. It was still too early for sunrise. He followed the road toward the sleepy village, his feet breaking through the ice on the top of a puddle every now and then with a mild splash.

He returned to the Burrow the same way he came. As he ran up the road toward the house, the sun rose bathing the higgledy-piggledy style house in a golden light. Harry stopped and stretched, admiring the view. The Burrow was more like a home than anything Harry had ever known. It was just the right size and filled with warm and caring people.

In some ways he was more prepared to face the fight against Voldemort than he was to face the Weasleys. He still had to figure out a way to tell the rest of them that Ginny and he were dating. Ron had seemed all right with it when he'd told him as they flew, but he never brought the subject up again for the rest of the day.

Harry hoped Ron's reluctance to talk to him about it was due to the owl he'd received from Hermione in the late afternoon. Ron seemed happy to hear from her, but he became really quiet after reading her letter. He refused to reveal what she'd said and seemed preoccupied the rest of the day. If Ron, who was one of his best friends, didn't want him at the Burrow after finding out, how would the rest of the Weasleys feel after they heard Harry and Ginny's news?

There was really only one way to find out. Harry finished stretching and moved toward the house. The moment he went back through the door, Mrs. Weasley welcomed him. That is, after she got over the shock of the door seeming to open and close by itself. She refused his offer to help with breakfast so Harry went upstairs to shower and change.

He stopped on the landing and looked at the lounge. A tree had been set up for them to decorate. The house seemed very quiet. The twins had gone back to their flat in London to sleep, but Charlie and Bill were bunking in Percy's old room.

None of them were awake yet so Harry was the first to shower. He didn't know if the hot water would last. The Dursleys always yelled at him for using too much hot water. So he hurried to clean himself and get dressed. As he stepped out of the steam, he went to the mirror and performed a shaving charm.

He was standing there, wrapped in only a towel when he heard a commotion in the hall and a squeal that could only be Ginny's. The door opened and slammed shut, but she still hadn't noticed him. She shut her eyes and leaned on the door. "I win, Bill!" she said, although she looked like she could fall asleep easily.

Bill pounded on the door. "Just let me in for a moment, Ginny. Please. I only need a minute, then you can have the first shower."

She relented and reached for the doorknob only to find that the door was locked. She rattled the knob gently and began, "Bill" before Harry silenced her.

She probably didn't need the silencing charm as she looked at Harry in his towel. Still wet from the shower, beads of water dripping from his hair and working their way down his bare chest, he folded his arms and grinned at her. Although still slim, training with Rhys had filled out his upper body muscles. She looked at him sleepily and smiled. Harry reached over the sink and pulled her close enough for a steamy kiss.

Bill was rattling the doorknob now, yelling, "Ginny? What's going on? Say something!"

Releasing her, Harry quickly grabbed his clothes. He removed the silencing charm and Apparated back to Ron's room. Thankfully Ron was still sleeping. Harry quickly finished dressing and walked downstairs.

Ginny was leaning on the wall outside of the bathroom. The door opened as Harry walked by. "Good morning, Ginny. Bill." he said, nodding to them on his way downstairs.

"Morning, Harry," said, Bill while Ginny just stared at him drowsily.

A short while later, as Ginny was heading down for breakfast, Ron pulled her into his room. He knew that she was probably still too sleepy for a real conversation, but he took a chance and said, "WaitI have something for you."

"I have something for you, too, Ron. Only I was going to put it downstairs under the Christmas tree." She smiled at him affectionately.

Ron reached in his pocket and pulled out some mistletoe. "Here it is. I had the twins personalize this for Harry. The rest is up to you."

Shocked, she said, "You did what?" Her tone of voice rose dangerously. She was awake now.

"WellI just thought it might be time to try something drastic. I mean, you might not want to hear this, but it's the truth. This mistletoe gag worked for Cho Chang last year." Ron nodded knowingly as he finished this statement.

"EwI did not need to know that. You mean Harry kissed Cho Chang under some mistletoe? Did he charm it to follow her around?" Ginny seemed a little upset.

Ron was at a loss, as always, when it came to an upset female. "Noit wasn't like that. I meanit was just the once, I'm pretty sure. He doesn't like her now. Of that I'm certain. In factI think you have a pretty good shot if you know what I mean."

She rounded on him angrily, "Ron, I always know what you mean. I justdidn't really think about Cho andmistletoe." She was trying to hide her anger. Thinking about that steamy kiss in the bathroom this morning with Harry all wet and half naked, then thinking about him kissing Cho Chang. She just didn't like the thought of it.

Knocking some of the leaves of the mistletoe as she threw it at Ron's mirror, she said, "I'm not in the kissing mood right now. But thanks for the thought, Ron." She stormed out of his room, past the twins standing in the hallway and down to breakfast.

"How did it go?" asked one of the twins. Ron couldn't tell which one.

"Terribly pear-shaped. I think she's actually gone mental. And she definitely seems over that old crush on Harry." Looking at the mistletoe laying next to Hermione's letter on his wardrobe, Ron was suddenly struck with a terrible thought. "Do you think all woman are essentially mental? Except Mum of courseIt would explain so much."

Breakfast was kind of quiet with everyone lost in their own thoughts and the twins kind of sleepy. Harry talked quietly with Mrs. Weasley and shot Ginny surreptitious looks which she studiously ignored.

Figuring that she was mad about the kiss, Harry was sorry that he'd done it. Of course she didn't want him to kiss her when he was half-naked and wet. It showed a lack of respect. She'd just looked so precious in her white nightie and blue dressing gown. He'd been swept away. Now he'd have to figure out a way to apologize to Ginny before announcing to the rest of her family that they were going out. Maybe they weren't anymore and he just didn't know it. Ginny still wouldn't look at him even though by now he was openly staring.

Harry didn't think he could count on Ron for support any more. Instead of his usual cheerful attitude, Ron came to breakfast and shot a worried glance at Ginny and then Harry. Since then, he was avoiding eye contact with everyone and eating his second helping of beans on toast. Harry interpreted Ron's behavior to mean that he didn't like the idea of them going out together. If only he could talk to Ginny alone.

The family moved to the lounge after breakfast. Some decorated the tree while others watched and gave advice. The tree filled up with ornaments and enchanted fairy lights. Soon there were so many presents underneath that they spilled all over the floor.

The twins' enchanted mistletoe, somewhat crushed, started following Harry pathetically around the room. Not amused since Ginny was obviously upset with him, he batted it away a few times, but it kept working its way back like a Mylar balloon. Finally he zapped it. Everyone stopped at the small explosion, but they politely went back to decorating without commenting on the cause.

They spent most of the afternoon outdoors, playing the grudge rematch Quidditch game. Despite their good intentions from the previous day, the game kept degenerating into a snow fight until all parties abandoned any pretense of playing an official game and just started throwing snow at each other.

Although they had no time alone, Harry managed to find a moment to whisper an apology to Ginny. She told him he didn't need to apologize for kissing her. She realized it was silly to be mad about a kiss that happened a year ago. Anyway, she couldn't stay mad at Harry after he stopped Charlie's enchanted snow dog from chasing her around the back garden. Charlie admitted defeat and asked if he and Bill could borrow the motorcycle to go into town.

When they left, Harry and Ginny ended up ganging up on Ron for a while, then the three of them went after the twins who had holed up in a tree near the frozen pond. Harry felt a sense of relief. The tension at breakfast seemed to have disappeared. Maybe Ron was warming to the idea of Harry being with Ginny.

Late in the afternoon, they sat around the Christmas tree, warming up and eating all sorts of goodies. The little house once again overflowed with laughter and good feelings. The Weasley family minus Percy was a tight knit group. Harry felt blessed that they had included him in their holiday.

An ordinary brown owl flew in carrying a newspaper. Odd since the wards prohibited any unknown owls. Bill put a coin in the pouch tied to its leg and unwrapped the thin newspaper that was attached. "It's a special edition of the Daily Prophet," he said, spreading it out on the coffee table.

Across the top a banner headline read, "The War Begins." Underneath it said, "Death Eaters attack in Ireland and Wales." There were photos of the Dark Mark in the sky over what looked like a bombed out houses.

"Are there any names?" Harry asked, his voice sounding fearful. His eyes met Ginny's.

She asked what they were all wondering. "Is it anyone we know?"

Bill remarked, "It doesn't seem to say. They must have wanted to get the word out as soon as possible -- alert people to the danger."

"Here it says, the names have been withheld until they can contact the relatives." Charlie looked at the cloudy sky out the window. No more owls were headed toward the Burrow. "It can't be Aunt Rosie or we would have further word." One of their favorite aunts had married an Irish wizard.

Arthur Weasley looked at the paper carefully, examining the photos. "They make no mention of the towns either. At least the Prophet sent out this edition. Better than waiting for tomorrow morning. By then there could be more attacksI don't think any of these could be Aunt Rosie's house or we'd see Toadstool Hill in the distance. You can see it from her back garden. She's probably fine."

The photos were evidence that other people were most definitely not fine. Voldemort had showed his hand, firing a warning shot to those who did not want to follow him.

"Maybe we should check the wards, Dad," Bill said. Mr. Weasley nodded and the two of them went to the door.

Harry followed. Putting on his cloak, he said quietly, "I'll help." He'd spent months working on wards, both on Hogwarts and the dragon enclosure.

If they were surprised by Harry's offer, they didn't show it. The three of them walked outside. Although no fresh snow had fallen, the gray sky looked threatening. They were all business as they checked the wards on the house and the outer perimeter. Harry was surprised at the number of wards that covered the small house. It was really a fortress.

"What happened last summer, Bill? How did those Death Eaters get past all of these defenses?" Harry asked.

"The Fidelius Charm failed. I mean the charm itself didn't fail. II just trusted the wrong person." He cleared his throat. "But it's fine now. Most of the wards worked which prevented those Death Eaters from hurting anyone but themselves. We recast the Fidelius Charm. I'm not the Secret Keeper any more. And we're being more careful this time."

"Who is the Secret Keeper?" Harry asked. Then he laughed and answered, "Ohit has to be Tonks. Or I would never have found the Burrow."

"That's right," Mr. Weasley said, curiously adding, "And she's been instructed to never put our address in writing."

The wards looked good. As they returned to the house, Mr. Weasley announced that he'd be in his study. Most everyone else settled into playing games and talking around the fire in the lounge. Mrs. Weasley went to work in the kitchen. After Fred and Ron whined about being hungry, Ginny left to get them a snack. Watching her retreating back, Harry suddenly jumped up and offered to help. He followed her into the kitchen.

"There's a plate of sandwiches for the boys if they're hungry, Ginny dear," Mrs. Weasley said. She had her face stuck in the pantry cupboard looking for a jar of treacle to make some tarts. Taking the plate of sandwiches from Ginny, Harry snuck a soft kiss before going back into the lounge. She smiled sweetly at him. He was relieved that she was over whatever had bothered her this morning.

Harry walked back in the lounge and set the plate on a table near the sofa. When he looked up, all of Ginny's brothers had their wands trained on him. Not sure why he was facing the business end of five Weasley wands, Harry said, "I surrender!" and put up his hands.

Her brothers all spoke at once. Harry could only make out a few of their comments, but he could tell they all centered on the theme of Harry and Ginny. Finally Bill said, "What's going on between you and our sister?"

Fred added, "Better come clean, Harry. Or the boy who lived is about to become the boy who lived without."

"Whwhat you mean?" Harry asked shakily. He was trying not to think about what Fred might have meant by that.

George looked from Harry's eyes to his forehead meaningfully a couple of times in rapid succession. Harry just looked back at him dumbly.

"Your hair, Harry," Ron said, nodding his head knowingly.

Pulling a piece of his hair into view, Harry said, "You turned my hair blue. Whywhy did you do that?" He was sputtering now.

"Correction — we didn't turn your hair blue," Fred began.

George continued, "But our dear sister is wearing a very special lip gloss, a Weasley Wheezes product."

"One you might remember from last summer," Fred said.

"Oh," said Harry. He remembered Ginny tripping over him as the twins chased her down the stairs after turning her hair blue. They'd kissed her cheek wearing a special lip gloss. So they must mean that she was wearing that same product today.

"Yes, Harry, oh," echoed Bill. "Now the question remains what are we going to do about it."

"Now that we know," said George.

"what we know," finished Fred.

"We'll want to know what your intentions are," said Bill.

"We know what boys your age think about," said Charlie smugly. Everyone at Hogwarts had heard stories about Bill and Charlie Weasley's exploits. Both of them were real ladies men. "And you're not allowed to think like that about Ginny."

"It's not what you're thinking" Harry began although he knew that is was a little bit like what they were thinking.

"It's not?" asked Bill, sounding surprised.

"Ginny and I are friends, really good friends and over time it turned into something more." He searched their faces for sympathy. Finding none, he stuck his chin out defiantly, "I'm going to go out with Ginny for as long as she wants me. You can't stop us. She has a right to make her own choices."

Turning to Ron with a worried expression, Harry said, "Ronyou're one of my best friends and I know you don't want Ginny dating, but"

Ron face was all red and contorted like he was going to explode. The twins shuffled their feet and looked at the floor, anywhere but at each other. Bill and Charlie were the only ones who looked composed.

Harry shouted at all of them, "Just do your worst. Hex me into tomorrow. Do what you have to do. It won't change how Ginny and I feel!"

The room was silent after these words. Then Ron dropped his wand on the couch. He burst out laughing and clapped Harry's back. The twins laughed, too, and started punching one of his arms. Charlie and Bill punched his other arm. They all put their wands away.

Ron drew back and punched Harry's arm like the others had done. "I've been trying to get you and Ginny together for months. You're such a stupid git sometimes, Harry."

"Ron told us his efforts were getting nowhere," said Fred.

"But Bill told us that he suspected you already had something going on with Ginny," said George.

"That's why we switched her lip gloss this morning. I'll tell youit wasn't an easy thing to do either. We had to get here at the crack of dawn."

"And wait until she took a shower. A very paranoid girlour Ginny," Fred finished fondly.

Charlie shook Harry's hand and said, "We hope we didn't scare you too badly."

"That was never our intention," said Bill.

Rubbing his arms where they'd all punched him, Harry felt relieved. "II don't know what to say except thanks. I've been trying to tell Ron about it. I guess you couldn't hear me yesterday on the motorcycle. Butit's great to know you guys are all right with it."

Harry grinned widely until George said solemnly, "Just don't let Mum know." Ginny and her mother walked through the door each carrying a tray. One with steaming mugs full of hot chocolate with marshmallows the other with a plate full of sandwiches.

"Let Mum know what?" Molly asked with an innocent smile. "Harry dear, how did your hair turn blue. You two aren't experimenting on him are you?" She looked at the twins exasperated.

"It wasn't us," said Fred hurt.

"It's our little Ginny whose been experimenting, I'd say," said George. His comment earned him a shower of throw pillows and a stern remonstrance from his mother.

Of course, neither of Ginny's parents objected to her dating Harry. Mrs. Weasley had suspected it would happen sooner or later since the two of them seemed to be close friends and Mr. Weasley suspected that her older brothers had already put Harry through enough.

Ginny hadn't taken too kindly to her brother's interference. She immediately paid Fred and George back by turning their hair blue and refusing to return the lip gloss. "I don't need a panel of big brothers to threaten my boyfriends. When you least expect itthere will be a payback."

Turning to George with fake tears, Fred said, "I've never been more proud of herAnd I suspect she stole the Repel Gel, too."

George fake cried, too and said, "It's like she's all grown up."

After dinner, they settled back around the fire in the lounge. It had begun to snow again and this time, the storm brought with it a driving wind. The sound of windows rattling and wind whistling, made everyone feel extra snug around the cozy family hearth. They settled in for a quiet Christmas Eve.

Ginny and Ron were sitting on the floor playing Wizard's Chess. She was trying to take his mind off Hermione. She'd finally made Ron tell her why the note was bothering him. Apparently, Hermione had mentioned that Viktor Krum had dropped by her house to wish her a Happy Christmas. Ron wasn't happy about it. He'd thought Krum was a thing of the past. Harry had tried to reassure him, but Ginny was doing a better job of distracting him.

Charlie's voice startled him. "I heard a rumor about you, Harry."

Embarrassed that he had jumped slightly, Harry said, "I hope it wasn't another crazy oneor one about me being crazy." He steeled himself to hear Charlie's concern.

"A new recruit for the dragon reserve in Romania said that he spent a couple of weeks working with a team of Dragon Masters at Hogwarts last month. He said that there was a student who had an amazing ability to bring the dragons under control. He said, this young man feared nothing from the dragons and could make them bow down before him. He said it was you."

Rolling his eyes, Harry said, "He was exaggerating. Believe me. I have a healthy fear of those dragons. Hagrid enlisted some of us to help the professionals. That's all. The dragon injured my arm on Halloween." Seeing Charlie wasn't convinced, he asked, "What's it like working with all those dragons? You must have more than two to look after."

Harry's question effectively changed the subject. Charlie held forth for quite a while about working with the dragons in Romania. He'd been studying there for several years now. Hundreds of dragons roamed free on the reserve, all breeds, including some Hebridean Black like the two that came to Hogwarts. The dragon handlers main job was to make sure the population wasn't suffering from any diseases. Each winter, they herded them together to ensure the dragons had enough to eat and get a rough estimate of how many dragons were there.

Charlie finished by saying, "Only this winter, we haven't rounded up as many as we have in the last five years. We think the younger ones have been dying off somehow. It's a mystery. By some estimates, over one hundred could be missing."

Listening to Charlie talk about hundreds of dragons, Harry tried to imagine how a hundred dragons in flight would look.

Noticing that Harry looked lost in thought, Charlie said, "But you can't get off that easywhat about that rumor? The fellow told me you give off a glow that mesmerizes the beasts. Hard to believe, but still, that's what the fellow said.

Disappointed that Charlie wasn't going to drop it, Harry sighed. "He must have meant this." He touched the gold wire around his neck and it appeared in his hand. He handed it to Charlie for closer inspection. "It's a torque. While it gives me some protection when it glows, I have to be as careful as the next person around dragons."

"I've never heard of anything like this," Charlie said. Bill joined them on the sofa for a closer look.

"Would it work for me?" Charlie asked hopefully.

Harry shook his head and smiled. "It came from the Potter vault and I suspect it only works for Potters," Harry said, thinking how sad it was that he was the only Potter left. He looked around at the Weasleys feeling lucky that they welcomed him so freely into their large family.

As though he understood what Harry was thinking, Bill asked quietly, "Did you have a chance to visit the vault yet?"

"Remus and I went last week. We had to get past a dragon to enter. It was interesting. Do you know how the charms on those old Gringotts vaults work? Is it a Blood Charm? Are you still a Charm Breaker?"

Bill laughed at the sudden barrage of questions. "I don't really work on the older vaults in London. The Potter vault probably does have some really old Blood Charm in place. One that no one remembers how to cast. When I worked in Egypt, I was a Curse Breaker, not a Charm Breaker. Now I work in New Accounts, setting up the security on newer vaults. It gives me plenty of time to work for the Order."

"But you know about Blood Charmswhat would it take to break something like that?" Harry asked.

"More blood of course. It's only logical." With that comment, Bill picked up his _Transfiguration Today_ magazine and began to read.

Opening presents on Christmas morning was a noisy process. The twins had enchanted more mistletoe. This time it stayed directly over their own heads. Harry looked pointedly at Fred and then at the sprig floating over him, "Expecting company?" Harry noticed that it was Bill who looked at the door.

"You never know," Fred answered.

"Best be prepared," George added, his own sprig following him carefully around the room.

The Weasley family all opened their presents at the same time. Harry watched as Ginny opened his present to her, a glove and scarf set charmed for warmth against the winter cold. She smiled at him, remembering their walk back from Hogsmeade last week. "Thanks, Harry," she called brightly across the room.

"No problem," Harry said, vowing to get her to step outside when everyone was done opening presents.

Harry gave Ron and the twins, each their own yearly subscription to _Quidditch Illustrated_. And he also gave Ron some Honeydukes chocolate and some broomstick polish.

The twins gave Harry a sample kit of Wheezes and a rather doubtful looking box of taffy with a note that read, "Just in case you have an urge to exact revenge. These are from that same batch."

Ron gave him a Chudley Cannons poster and a big box of Chocolate Frogs.

Ginny's present was more personal. She gave him a photo album of him playing Quidditch, even one photo of his first year before Colin Creevey came to Hogwarts.

"Thanks, Gin. I guess it's a good thing you're friends with Colin," Harry said cheerfully.

Ron groaned and looked at the twins. They both shrugged.

Smiling at Ginny across the room, Harry was just trying to work out some way to speak to her alone. Although he hadn't managed it in two days, he had hope. He gathered his presents together to take them to Ron's room. Then he heard Mrs. Weasley call to Ginny asking for her help in the kitchen. Harry dropped his things and followed them.

"I know my way around the kitchen, Mrs. Weasley. Isn't there some way I can help?"

"No, Harry dear. You go along and have some fun. We have everything under control." Noticing his crestfallen expression, she stopped herself from saying, You're a guest.' She sighed and said, "Maybe you could just set the table."

Harry grinned at her and reached for the tableware. Ginny was smiling softly as she peeled potatoes. They worked in silence except for Mrs. Weasley's off key humming.

When they finished, Mrs. Weasley put all the vegetables in a large roasting pan that had a huge beef roast already cooking in it. She smiled warmly at them.

Just as Harry was going to suggest that Ginny and he step outside for a minute, a series of thumping noises from the next room suggested that someone had arrived by floo. Spinning toward the door, Ginny said, "That must be Hermione."

When they walked into the lounge, Fleur Delacour and Angelina Johnson had also arrived. Hermione and Ron were sitting very close to one another on the couch, not saying much. They had another gift exchange with Hermione. As they finished there was a knock on the door.

Bill opened it to find Percy on the other side. Percy looked nervously around the room before entering. They all sat back down quietly. Bill looked like he was about to say something when Mrs. Weasley came in from the kitchen.

"Percy!" she cried, throwing her arms around him. Everyone smiled. As far as most of them knew, Percy hadn't been speaking to his parents since their row the year before. But it was Christmas and time to welcome him back home.

After several minutes of his mother fussing over him, his father stepped up. He'd come into the lounge from his study when he heard the commotion. Percy stuck out his hand. Arthur used it to pull his son into a big warm hug. That was the Weasleys for you; they always opted for warmhearted.

Mrs. Weasley dried her eyes and said, "You're just in time for Christmas dinner, Percy dear. Everyone, let's tuck in." Dinner was a feast of roasted vegetables, roast beef and Yorkshire pudding followed by trifle, Christmas pudding and biscuits. They ate slowly, enjoying the good food and each other's company. It was late afternoon by the time they finished.

Harry couldn't believe how full he was at the end of the meal, but Mrs. Weasley's cooking was too good to pass up. "I'll have to run five extra miles tomorrow to wear this off," he said.

"You shouldn't be out running alone, Harry," said Bill.

Ron smiled and said, "Save the argument, Bill. I've been telling him that ever since the incident in Hogsmeade. He insists it clears his head."

"Are either of you offering to run with me?" asked Harry. No one answered his question. Harry shook his head at them. He was still trying to work out a way to be alone with Ginny.

Mrs. Weasley said, "Let's get comfortable in the other room, dears." Ginny and Harry moved to help her clear the table while the others moved toward the Christmas tree.

George shook his head dramatically. "He's already whipped."

Fred agreed and added in the same wistful tone, "And so young, too."

"We knew you were a goner when we sent that Valentine in your second year," George said.

"We were glad to help. That's our Ginny. Always gets her man." The two of them left the kitchen.

"I'm just glad for a moment alone with you," said Harry quietly, running a hand through his hair. If he helped Ginny with her chores, then she would be able to join the party sooner or maybe she'd step outside with him for a moment.

Mrs. Weasley came up behind him and fashioned a frilly apron around him. He raised his eyebrows in surprise, but didn't protest. "Thanks for all your help, Harry dear. You're really quite good in the kitchen, aren't you?" None of her boys knew anything about cooking.

Glad that life at the Dursleys had taught him something useful, Harry rolled up his sleeves and started to clear the food off plates. Mrs. Weasley had already set the washing spells so Ginny and he made quick work of helping.

When they reached the door of the lounge, loud voices could be heard. The first was Percy's. "What do you mean, they're going out? And none of you have a problem with that?"

Ron's voice sounded indignant. "Harry would never hurt her. Hehe'd fight for her if he had tothink of the Chamber. He barely knew her and he risked his life to save her from that diary."

Percy and Ron were standing in front of the fireplace, glaring at each other. Percy threw his head back to look down his nose at Ron. "I know you never listen to my advice, Ronald, but I've told you before. You should be more careful who your friends are." He lowered his voice. "The boy's just not stable. He's a loose canon, going off to fight Death Eaters, breaking into the Department of Mysteries. And you're just happy to follow him."

Seeing the stunned expression on Ron's face, Percy looked satisfied with himself. In slow deliberate tones, he said, "You all could have been killed. It's only the gracious intervention of Minister Fudge that kept you from being arrested for your foolishness."

At this Ron turned red in the face and said, "What would the charges have been? Saving Fudge's sorry arse from Death Eaters?"

Percy made a placating gesture with his hands and said, "Calm down, little brother. My only point is that Ginny shouldn't be involved with him. She could be killed. She'll definitely become a prime target. And even if she doesn't, it's only a matter of time before You Know Who gets to him. Then she'll be horribly upset because he's well, you know." He had a smug look on his face like he considered himself smarter than everyone in the room.

Arthur Weasley looked at his son sadly. "You don't know for a fact that anything will happen that way, Percy."

Bill shouted angrily, "And you shouldn't talk about things you know nothing about. Who got the Burrow attacked last summer? If we hadn't put up those wards for Harry's visit, Ginny, Ron and Hermione would probably have been kidnapped or killed."

He turned to everyone. "Percy's the one who gave away our secret. I wrote a note explaining that we'd performed the Fidelius Charm and I was the Secret Keeper. Even though he's lived here all of his life, he'd never have been able to come home if I hadn't. So I wrote out the location of the Burrow for him. He admitted to me after the attack that he never destroyed the note. What did you tell me, Perce? You put it in a folder stamped Secret' and oops left it out on your desk only to find it the folder empty after a long weekend."

"That wasn't smart, Percy," said Charlie.

Looking hurt, Percy said, "It was supposed to be charmed so no one could open it. How was I to know someone at the Ministry couldn't be trusted?"

"Do you realize how that sounds?" asked Bill. No one noticed that Ginny and Harry had been standing at the door holding hands, listening to their argument in stunned silence.

Percy stuck his nose in the air slightly and folded his arms in front of himself. "I don't care. The point is she has to be stopped. She shouldn't see him anymore. For her own safety and the safety of this family."

Ginny let out an exasperated growl. "What business is it of yours, Percy?" she shouted angrily. She stepped into the room with her hands on her hips. "Don't think I've forgotten all the horrible things you said and did to Harry last year. You tried to send him to prisonand for what? Because he defended himselfand saved his stupid cousin, too. You just want to bring him down so you can feel better about yourself. You're" she gave another low growl and left in a whirl of red hair.

Looking briefly at the stunned faces of all the Weasleys, Harry followed. He'd wanted to speak to her alone, but not like this. He didn't want to come between her and her family, even Percy. Wellmaybe Percy.

Hoping none of them would come with them, Harry found her quickly, just outside in the back garden. She was crying and stomping her foot at the same time. "Erhe makes me soangry. Why did he have to come back here? Just to say something so mean."

Harry put his arms around her. She turned so she was facing him and melted into his arms. Burrowing into his chest, she cried quietly while he stroked her hair and muttered soothingly. When the crying seemed to stop and he heard a little hiccup, he kissed the top of her head and said, "I've been wanting to be alone with you all day. This isn't quite how I pictured it." He gave a quiet laugh and conjured a tissue for her.

She looked up and smiled at him. Her eyes were puffy from crying. The sun was setting, making her hair an impossible array of reds. When she blew her nose on the tissue, Harry felt a tug on his heart.

"Maybe we should move away from the windows," said Ginny, looking toward the house.

As Harry followed her gaze, he saw several people moving away and closing the curtains quickly. "I see your point." He took her hand and they walked out under the winter twilight sky into the garden away from prying eyes.

"How can you be so calm? Don't you just want to strangle him?" she asked, making another soft hiccuping noise.

Harry laughed, "Percyand his bossthey aren't my biggest problem."

"So you're not angry." She sounded surprised.

Feeling a little surprised himself, Harry said, "I'm not angry with him. He didn't say anything that I haven't thought at some time or another."

"What about last year? He tried to send you to Azkaban." Ginny didn't think she'd ever forgive her brother for helping Fudge at Harry's trial or for the warning letters that he sent to both her and Ron later that fall.

Harry thought about it for a moment. "It's safe to say that I'll never trust your brother Percy, butno, I'm not angry. I guess I forgive them for their stupidity. I've made some stupid mistakes myself. I don't think I can afford to stay mad." He wasn't really sure what he meant by that, but he was sure that he wasn't feeling any anger.

A huge full moon was coming up, and the stars were beginning to show. Harry dusted off a bench and said, "Ginny, I think there's something else you should think about." Harry hesitated, thinking, What if she doesn't want to be with me anymore once she thinks this through?'

"What is it, Harry?" she asked. He seemed so serious.

He took her right hand in both of his and said, "We should face things as they really are — not as we wish they could be. You know that I have to fight Voldemort." Ignoring the shiver she gave when he said the name, Harry continued, "The sooner the better really. The longer I wait, the more people will suffer...I don't mean I'm headed off to fight him tomorrow. I'm not sure I know how. But I will be sometime in the not too distant future. And when I dowell, Percy's a prat, but he's right about one thing. I may not survive."

"Don't talk like that Harry," Ginny said, paling.

"We're in the middle of a war — we need to face the fact that not everyone will live through thisI've come to terms with it since I found out about the prophecy." He turned her hand over and ran a finger over her palm, tracing one of the lines there.

Ginny interrupted, speaking brokenly. "I won't listen to talk like this, Harry. You'll come back. You'll survivebecause II need you." She pulled her hand away from him.

He put his arm across her shoulders. "I need you, too, Ginny. It's not that I want you to worry. I'm bringing this up to explain something."

Suddenly worried that Harry was breaking up with her, Ginny held her breath. She didn't trust herself to say anything.

Harry continued somewhat brokenly, "If I may not survive, then I want to spend every chance that I havethe time I know for certain that I haveI want to spend that time with you. That is, as much time as I can."

Relief coursing through her, Ginny smiled and snuggled into him. "I'm glad, Harry. I want to spend time with you, too."

Harry enjoyed feeling her move closer to him, but he persisted. "But the question you should ask yourself is do you want a boyfriend that you could lose in this waror worsea boyfriend that could put you in danger."

She didn't answer. If fact, she didn't say anything at all. She just stared at him with tears in her eyes.

"Say something, Gin. I'll understand. If you think you'd be safer without meI'll respect your feelings. I don't want you hurt because of me."

"Stop it. Just stop it." Tears finally began to fall down her cheeks again. "Percy's wrong. He only sees the problems and not the good. He thinks playing it safe will be rewarding." She leaned on his shoulder.

He patted her arm and said, "Shheither way, I'll do whatever you want. Think about it for a few days, then decide." His eyes had grown large and dark as he spoke.

She turned her back to him, but she didn't protest when he put both his arms around her. Leaning back against his chest, she sighed. It felt so good. With his strong arms around her, what could happen to them?

Looking at the back of her head made it hard for Harry to tell what she was thinking. At least he could tell that she wasn't crying anymore. He spoke softly, "All rightI'll change the subject to something more cheerful. HereI want to keep you safe, so I made this for you." He rifled in his own pocket then brought his arm back around her. This time he held out a small velvet pouch. "Happy Christmas."

"You already gave me your Christmas present." Ginny brushed away the tears she'd been trying to hide and smiled.

"Can't I give you two?" Harry asked, sounding eager. "Open it so we can see if it works."

She ripped the velvet bag open before he could finish his sentence and gave a small gasp. Inside was a delicate gold chain with a charm attached. The charm was made of gold threaded like Celtic knot with three small rubies embedded in it. "It's Gryffindor colors like your torque."

"It is a torque, well, sort of. One of theI found out how make this," Harry said, lifting it out of the box. Without giving any details, he said, "Let's try it."

Ginny nodded her agreement and lifted her hair so he could put the chain around her neck. He fumbled with the clasp as his hands were shaking slightly. Harry took a long breath then stood up to examine the effect. The delicate chain with the gold and red charm certainly looked pretty, as did the girl wearing it.

She blushed under his appreciative stare, fingering the small charm. "Thanksit's lovely," she said softly.

Silently agreeing with her, Harry said, "There's more."

She looked up at him, confused. "Another present?" she asked.

"Nothere's more to your present. Wellif I made it correctly." He sighed and said, "I'm going to have to hex you. I borrowed' Percy's wand so you can defend yourself. Don't worry, I don't think the Ministry will know it's you." Quietly summoning Percy's wand had seemed like a good idea during the shouting match. He handed the wand to Ginny.

"Happy ChristmasI'm going to have to hex you?" Ginny asked, trying to suppress a laugh. "Very nicehow romantic?" She was laughing openly now.

Harry walked several feet away and grinned back at her. "Ready?"

"Yes," she answered and faced him smiling sweetly.

__

"Rictusempra!" he said clearly, aiming his hand at her. A shot of light flew from the end of his fingers.

As it approached her, she shouted, "_Protego!_" As the light from his spell hit her shield a faint white glow emanated from the graceful necklace. The small rubies glowed and the light grew stronger as the tickling spell continued to hit her shield until a bright white lit the garden around them.

Harry let out a whoop as he ran back to her side. "It worked! I wasn't sureand there was no way to test it without you." He smiled at her. "You know what this means, don't you?"

The way his grin lit up his face made her heart pound and her knees feel like they might give way. "What?" she asked softly. He seemed to be closer without ever having moved.

Taking her face in his hands, he searched her features lovingly, "You'll be safe nowI meanas safe as anyone can be. You have something to help protect you even if you're all alone." Sighing with relief, he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers, wondering at their softness. He moved his hands behind her back and gently pulled her close to him as if she was something so delicate and precious that he had to be careful.

She responded by moving her arms around him and caressing the hair at the nape of his neck. For a few minutes they were lost to rational thought.

It was Harry who finally pulled back and said softly, "Wow."

That sound of appreciation filled Ginny with a sense of satisfaction that she could make Harry feel that way. She knew she didn't have to think about what he'd said before.

"How can you kiss me like that and not know the answer to your question is yes? Of course, I want to be with you even though I might lose you."

"You should still think about it for a few days, Ginny."

Chin up in defiance, she said, "I don't have to. I'd rather have a little bit of wonderful, than a lifetime of safety. And you're right. We should face things as they really are. If you don'tif we don't have that much time, that's all the more reason to be together now." She started to tremble despite her brave words.

Harry pulled his cloak off and wrapped it around her, pulling her close again in the process. They stood there in the moonlight, listening to the sounds of the wintery garden around them, warm in each other's arms. It began to snow.

****

To Be Continued

A/N: Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

warp17: Thanks for saying that. I'll try. Thanks for reviewing!

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Nightwing509: There will be a little more of Ron's reaction as the group returns to Hogwarts. Thanks for writing a review!

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Luna Lovegood 61: Thanks for saying that about Godric's Hollow. I'm hoping that J.K. Rowling will give us a closer look at Godric's Hollow in Book 6 or 7. Thanks for reviewing!

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Nathan Postmark: At least her family knows! Thanks for reviewing!

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Coke Freak: Thanks for what you said about the characters. I like Remus, too. Thanks for writing a review!

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Dragon Phoenix: I'm glad you're curious about Harry's fencing teacher. He does have another part to play later. He doesn't have a visible Dark Mark and both Harry and Dumbledore have checked out his truthfulness, but you never know Thanks for reviewing!

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Ted M. Hammett: I appreciate you saying you liked the Diagon Alley fight. Thanks for reviewing!

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Iluvatar: Thanks! I will try.

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Lourdes1: Most of the family gave their blessing! Thanks for reviewing!

Wytil: I thought so, too. Anyway, Harry needs a little fun. Thanks for reviewing!

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Mrs. Sakura Potter: Thanks for saying such nice things. Thanks for reviewing!

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Red Death: Thanks for the note about formatting. I don't know how the paragraph spacing disappears between my computer and Hopefully, I fixed it for good this time. Thanks!

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hots4harry73: Thanks for reviewing!

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JLHERC: I'm honored my story is your first. I appreciate you saying all those nice things. Thanks for reviewing!

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rosepetal13: Thanks for all your reviews and all your kind comments! Hope you got enough sleep anyway. I liked the Death Eater wannabee thing, too. And for the record, I appreciate reviews in ALL CAPS, or not all caps. Thanks for reviewing!

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Ghost Magic19: Thanks for saying that. Summer does give me extra time to write, when I'm not chasing raccoons. I'll try to work faster. Thanks for reviewing!

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Laen: I'll try. Thanks for reviewing.

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bluemoon52292: I don't deserve all the nice things you said, but I really appreciate you saying them. And thanks for wishing me luck. I believe in luck. Thanks for reviewing!

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creative reader: Thank you! I'll try to update soon.

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blackiebrens: Thanks for saying that about Ron. And, of course, you're right about Spiderman, too. Thanks for reviewing!

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Jean: Good question! In this story, Harry's magic can't be traced by the Ministry unless he uses his wand. Thanks for writing!

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corwin: Thanks for both of your reviews! I'll try!

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Princess Skywalker Organa: Thanks for saying that. And thanks for reviewing!

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Mandy h.: Thanks for writing a review!

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gogeta97: I am happy you reviewed my story even though you don't ordinarily. Thanks!

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athenakitty: I'll try to answer your questions. Harry hasn't taken control over the money and estates. He definitely rode the motorcycle over the Christmas hols. Although I didn't show the scene in the story, I hope everyone assumes that Remus liked his gift.

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Orion the Hunter: Thanks for reviewing! I'll try to update soon.

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Craaminator #9: There's more to the necklace spell and it isn't all that sweet. Thanks for reviewing!

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Gryphonmistress: Good suggestion. I'll try to work it in. I think this chapter may have answered your other questions. Your speculations are always fun. Thanks for reviewing!

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Silver Warrior: Those were really good guesses. Remus and Tonks are both interesting. Thanks for reviewing!

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Troll: Thanks for all of your reviews! I agree, wizards need more ways to communicate. Either something like the mirrors or something better. Malfoy hasn't finished doing bad things.

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Lady Tinkerbell: I think this chapter may be the one you were expecting. At least I hope it is. Thanks for reviewing!

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Iben: Thanks for writing a review. I appreciate it!

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Musicfan013: Thanks for all your kind comments. You sound really busy so thanks for taking the time to read and review!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	23. En Garde

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter. Thanks for taking the time to read and review. I know people say it all the time, but it's really true. It makes an enormous difference to the writer. Thanks.

I just saw the movie King Arthur and was pleased to note that Kiera Knightley was wearing an authentic looking Celtic torque in the final battle scene.

Chapter 23

En Garde

The frosty winter air made the station extra steamy as the Hogwarts Express prepared to leave. Harry and Ron went ahead to find an empty compartment and put away the trunks. Bill had charmed their luggage to make it light enough for the boys to carry all four trunks, which made Ron and Harry appear to be extremely strong as they walked through the crowd, hoisting the bulky gear.

Hermione and Ginny stopped to speak with people from the D.A. as they boarded. The students spoke urgently in hushed tones as though they were worried they'd be overheard. Despite the fact that hardly any students had stayed at Hogwarts over Christmas, the train station was fairly empty.

Looking back over his shoulder at the girls, Harry thought how easy it was to spot Ginny. Even with her hair covered by a tight knit cap, he could identify her by the way she was standing with her hands on her hips and her head tilted to the side.

New Year's Day had brought news of more attacks by Voldemort's supporters on homes and businesses. Muggle newspapers reported it as an increase in terrorist attacks. Most of the wizards targeted were Muggle born so they had little chance of defending themselves. It seemed dark times had returned with a vengeance.

Part of him was sorry to be headed back to school, to leave the peace of the Burrow and face the real world. Spending time with the Order had helped him understand the upcoming struggle. Like a camera lens coming into focus, the dilemma was becoming clear.

Allegiances were being sworn; lines were being drawn, but it would never be as simple as good versus evil, light against dark. Percy was proof that some wizards wouldn't know the truth if it came up and slapped them in the face. Yet the future would be determined by the paths everyone chose.

Of course, the situation with Percy on Christmas night had been quickly resolved. The moment Harry and Ginny returned to the house, Percy had apologized for his outburst. Perhaps the other Weasleys put him up to it. Harry thought he could see a slight red mark on the left side of Percy's face. And all the Weasley boys, even the twins, seemed to be a bit tight lipped. More than once, he detected a nervous glance from the boys toward Mrs. Weasley. In any case, Harry had been quick to forgive not wanting to be the cause of a rift in the Weasley family.

Arthur gave a speech about how important it was to be together. He insisted that everyone agree to set aside their differences for at least this one day. After all, the war threatened to make a greater divide, one that couldn't be crossed with the simple acceptance of an apology.

As they boarded the train, Harry worried that some students returning to Hogwarts might have been recently orphaned. He didn't want to consider that some might not be returning at all. They'd all know soon enough.

When Hermione and Ginny joined the boys in the compartment, they had some news. "Justin Finch-Fletchley's family home was utterly destroyed, but they were all away on a skiing holiday in Switzerland." Ginny slipped into the seat directly across from Harry and finished explaining that the Death Eaters had devastated the stately home in London's fashionable Belgravia. Apparently they didn't bother to check if anyone was home.

Looking around the compartment at everyone's grim expression, Harry said, "They were extremely lucky. I reckon the Death Eaters wouldn't care that much about whether the family lived or died. If they are trying to scare people into joining them, leveling the house is enough."

Standing at the door already wearing her Hogwarts uniform, Hermione nodded solemnly. "You may be right." Looking at Ron who was sitting down next to Harry and putting his feet up, she cleared her voice and stared at him as though he was doing something wrong.

Frozen for a moment as he sensed Hermione's attitude, Ron then looked from her shoes up to her face. He searched with his eyes around the compartment as though he was missing something. Looking back at Hermione, he asked, "What is it, then?"

With an air of fading patience, she said, "We have a prefect meeting in five minutes."

"That gives me four to rest my feet then." Ron leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

Spinning toward the door purposefully, Hermione said, "I'll see you there, Ron."

If Ron heard the compartment door open and close, he gave no sign of it. He did, however, open his eyes a squidge to see Harry and Ginny both looking at him curiously.

"Is there something on my nose?" Ron asked.

"Not a thing…what happened to 'yes, dear and no, dear'?" Harry continued to stare, thinking it had been a while since he had noticed Ron deliberately provoking Hermione.

Discomfited by their scrutiny, Ron gave up on resting. "A man's got to think of his…pride…Best get to that meeting. Wouldn't do to be too late."

"Fred and George really got to you," Ginny said, her voice was full of understanding.

Harry was sympathetic, too. Although he'd been busy fielding his own share of teasing from the twins, Harry had noticed them giving 'Ronniekins' non-stop suggestions on how to regain the upper hand in his relationship with Hermione.

Without answering his sister, Ron left the compartment just as Parvati and Lavender crowded in. Parvati sat down next to Ginny quickly, but Lavender made a big deal about squeezing through the door sideways at the same time as Ron.

The girls exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes, discussing the events of each other's holidays. Harry found it curious that these two suddenly had such a big interest in what Ginny had been doing. After a bit, their real reason for visiting became clear. Lavender turned to Harry and asked, "What are we going to do about these new attacks?"

"Do?" Harry asked dumbly, wondering why they were asking him. Looking at the sincere looks on their faces, he said, "I don't know. We'll just need to go back to school as always."

"Did you hear about Justin?" Parvati asked.

Harry nodded. "What a relief he wasn't home."

"That could have been Dean's family. They're Muggles and they didn't go anywhere over the holidays," Parvati said, her big brown eyes shining with sincerity while she carefully avoided looking at Ginny.

"Ah…I see what you mean." He smiled at her. Harry knew that the Order had set wards on the homes of all the boys in his dormitory. If any of them were attacked, Aurors would be there within minutes. He also knew that he wasn't supposed to mention it to anyone. She didn't seem all that convinced as he spoke. "I'm sure someone will take steps to see that Muggle born students have some extra protection. At least Dean will be at school…."

Lavender interrupted. "What about someone like Seamus? His mother's a witch, but he's a half-blood. She married a Muggle."

"Same story. I'm sure someone will look out for Seamus' family." Seeing both girls still looking to him for comfort, Harry decided to fall back on Hermione's favorite line. "I think we can all trust Professor Dumbledore to take care of things."

Everyone fell silent as if they were thinking this over. Lavender broke the silence. "When's the D.A. dueling tournament going to start?"

Ginny had been quiet while the girls questioned him. As Harry told them about the upcoming D.A. plans, she moved over to the seat next to Harry. Taking her hand in his without thinking about it, he smiled at her briefly. Then he looked out the window for another moment before he said, "I wish I could say something more." He knew they were looking to him for reassurance.

"That's all right, Harry. Thanks." Parvati stood up, a bright smile suddenly lighting her face. She looked like Christmas had come again. "We'll see you around Ginny. Harry."

Lavender eyes were sparkling, too. She pressed her lips together as if she was trying to stop herself from speaking. Then she also smiled widely and said, "Have a nice trip." She grabbed Parvati's elbow and pulled her toward the door. They stopped in the doorway and looked back and Harry and Ginny, then they broke into giggles and hurried away.

"I'll never understand giggling girls," Harry said, watching them leave.

Raising up her hand which was still firmly in Harry's grasp, Ginny said, "I guess people were going to find out some way. Why not let the Gryffindor gossips handle it?"

Pleased that she wanted everyone to know about them, Harry leaned his head down on her shoulder. "Not everyone will be happy to hear it. Your 'admirers' may not take it as well as those two did. Poor Colin and Dean."

Her laugh sounded low and sweet. "Colin's just a good friend and Dean gave up on me ages ago…And what about you? Susannah Martin might actually come after me. And she's a little scary."

"Susannah is sort of…forward. If it comes to that, my money would be on you, but it's probably best not to take her on. She is a big girl." Harry smiled as Ginny punched his arm.

Neville and Luna walked into the compartment. Neville was out of breath and looked disheveled. He was holding his toad firmly by the foot.

Eyebrows up in question, Harry asked, "Where've you two been? Did you just board the train?"

"Trevor leapt away from me just as we climbed on. It took all this time to find him." Neville's reluctant pet had been trying to escape as long as Harry had known Neville.

Luna looked at the two of them and said, "We found him in the luggage car, hiding under a violin case.

With that the four of them settled into listening to Luna's theory about Trevor's propensity to wander. She was convinced that someone was trapped in Trevor's body, yearning to return to their loved ones, but unable to control themselves.

Neville's mouth hung slightly open and his eyes widened whenever she said anything for dramatic effect. "Do you think I should try to help him somehow?" he asked.

"We could perform the Animus Libertas ceremony during the next new moon. That would free his restless spirit." Luna shrugged nonchalantly. She wrinkled her nose and adjusted her wand which was currently holding hair in a twisted knot on top of her head.

Marveling at Luna's ability to fascinate his dorm mate, Harry said, "But Luna, what if Trevor is just an ordinary, magical toad?"

"That is a risk. If there is no restless spirit, the ceremony might turn him into some kind of bird." Luna said, studying her fingernails.

Ginny and Harry tried to stifle their laughter. Leaning his head back on the seat and looking up at the ceiling, anywhere but the sincere faces of his friends, Harry finally calmed down, too. Taking a deep breath, he asked, "Are you both planning to be in the tournament later this month?"

"I am, but Luna's not one for competitions."

Harry said, "I agree, they divide people. But this is supposed to just be a friendly practice sort of tournament to help people train."

"Someone's bound to get upset. Setting one student against the other is bound to create hard feelings. Just like the house point system." Luna explained without being asked. "You're one of the few teachers that gives house points out equally, regardless of house affiliation."

"I'm not really a teacher, Luna. I just assist Professor Moody so I have extra time to study Defense."

She shrugged. "Anyway…you award points to people in your classes fairly."

They all knew that Snape was notorious for favoring his house, but the rest of the teachers were fair unless they were really upset with someone. Ginny spoke up, "I think we need to do something to bring everyone together. The D.A. is one of the few groups with people from every house involved. The Charms Society is mostly Ravenclaws and the Gobstones Club has only a few members."

"Like what?" Harry asked. Putting his arm around Ginny, he briefly buried his face in her hair.

"Like a party or something after the final duel. Might make the losers feel better." She gave him an expectant look and waited for him to answer.

"Sounds all right to me. I'll find out what Moody thinks." Harry said, somewhat distracted by the scent of her hair.

The door slid open slowly. Expecting to see Ron and Hermione return, Harry asked, "So did you kiss and make up?" before looking up.

"I promise you, I haven't been kissing anyone from this end of the train," answered a sneering Draco Malfoy, looking down his nose at Harry, wearing his usual immaculate Hogwarts robe and carrying an extremely small book.

Noticing Harry's arm around Ginny, Malfoy narrowed his eyes and smirked. "What have we here? So the rumors are true. Ah…the heart wants what it wants." He put his hand over his chest and fluttered his eyelids.

"Are you having a seizure or have you been sniffing flutterbeans?" Luna asked although she didn't seem alarmed by either idea, only mildly curious.

Ginny snorted in response, and then giggled in embarrassment. To the sneering Slytherin she said, "You can move on now, Malfoy. You've mocked us; your work here is done. Take your little book and go." Harry smiled at her appreciatively.

Malfoy answered, "Oh…I'm just getting started." He looked at Ginny from head to toe and said, "Finally figured out the recipe for my mother's love potion cookies? Or did you have to flash your chest for the gullible golden boy?"

Ginny put her hand on Harry's arm to stop him from hexing Malfoy into tomorrow. She shook her head slightly. "He's never worth it, Harry. Especially when he sounds so rehearsed. How long did it take you to think up that insult, Malfoy?"

Knowing that Malfoy was only trying to vex him into doing something stupid was one thing. Harry could handle that sort of thing more easily than he used to. But calming himself down in the face of anyone taunting Ginny was another. He stared darkly at the Slytherin.

The air around them began to crackle. Luna looked around the compartment as if looking for the source of the energy that was building up, but everyone else stayed focused on Malfoy.

Harry fixed a stern glare into Malfoy's cold blue eyes. He was still blocking the doorway, contemplating the Gryffindors. It was plain to Harry that the blond boy was lying. This was a sideshow, a distraction, meant to disguise Malfoy's real purpose in coming here.

His voice laced with hatred, Malfoy continued to provoke Harry. "Are you going to make me leave, Potter? Because I'd really like to see you try." Malfoy pulled out his wand and aimed it at Harry. "Tell you what, I'll take my best shot, then you can give me yours…."

"That's going to be a detention with McGonagall for menacing another student, Malfoy. It'll be more if you don't leave quietly right this minute." Hermione said the last three words slowly and deliberately, never taking her eyes off the back of his head. Ron and she were standing in the corridor.

Oddly enough, Malfoy smiled softly. A gleam appeared in his eye. Turning around to sneer at Hermione, he said, "Enjoy your little moment. Your kind are going to be extinct soon enough, Granger. You're nothing, just a…" He didn't have an opportunity to finish his sentence as Harry waved his hand surreptitiously and Malfoy's eyes became unfocused.

Looking around as if he didn't recognize his surroundings, Draco's facial expression changed drastically. The pleasant expression on his face made him seem like a different person.

Moving his palm in front of his face, Neville said, "He's gone."

"I have a difficult time believing that he just stopped that sentence on his own." Hermione folded her arms in front of her and tucked her chin close to her chest, looking meaningfully at Harry.

"The important thing is that he stopped." Harry seemed unconcerned. He stood up and said, "Ron and I will escort him back to his own 'kind'. That should make everybody happy."

"We won't be long." Ron said, taking Malfoy's arm.

Giving Harry a worried look, Ginny said, "Maybe we should go with you."

As though he just noticed something, Neville asked, "Hey…are you and Ginny going out now, Harry?"

"Haven't they been going out for a while?" asked Luna.

Harry shrugged his shoulder and said, "Back in a few." He was glad to leave the rest of that conversation to the others. Ron and he led Malfoy through the train, looking for signs of other Slytherins. The Confundus Charm would only last a short while, but Ron was in good spirits leading this goofy-faced version of Draco through the corridor.

"Want to braid his hair or paint his fingernails or something?" Harry said, laughing and pulling gently on Malfoy's arm to keep him moving.

Draco looked from one to the other with a silly smile, just as a compartment door was jerked open. Pansy Parkinson stuck her perfectly coifed head out and simpered. "There you are, Draco." Her face changed as she noticed his smile. "What have you done to him? You stupid Gryffindorks."

Ron protested, "Hey…we prefer Gryffingeeks."

Laughing at Ron, Harry said, "There's nothing wrong with Malfoy that couldn't be cured by…Oh…never mind. Just take him back…Please!" Harry had already removed the charm so Malfoy's confused look was now the genuine reaction to finding himself down the hall. Without another word, Pansy pulled him into their compartment.

"What was that all about?" Harry asked.

"Who knows with them? Maybe Malfoy thinks swapping insults is fun." Ron shook his head.

"Gryffingeek, Ron?" Harry asked, but Ron just shrugged.

The rest of the ride was uneventful. It was snowing softly when they arrived, giving the air an ethereal glow. Hogwarts looked enchanting in the snow with its windows glowing warmly into the night. The rest of the wizarding world may be struggling with the war, but Hogwarts was safely hidden away.

As they hurried to board the Thestral drawn carriages, Harry heard Malfoy at it again. This time he was yelling at Sophie Moon. "You should have listened to your real friends. Now you're all alone…and you've only got yourself to blame." Malfoy was holding onto her arm with both hands as though he'd stopped her from striking him.

"You're…horrible…pathetic…just let me pass." She was choking back tears.

"C'mon, Ron," whispered Harry. The two of them moved toward the Slytherins.

"Let her go, Malfoy." Harry spoke mildly enough, but those around them hushed because of the natural authority in his voice.

"Let's just hex him, Harry." Ron glared, reaching for his wand.

"I don't take orders from you." Malfoy returned Ron's glare with a derisive look.

"No — and you don't listen to reason either, but you will have to let go of her. Right now." Harry was still using a low, deliberate voice.

"How are you going to make me, Potter?" Malfoy spat his question with venom and bravado, but moments later he released Sophie's arm like it was on fire. Without making a sound, Harry had cast another type of Confundus Charm on Malfoy. This time to make him believe her arm was hot.

Hermione caught up behind them, "I warned you about menacing other students, Malfoy. I'll report this to Professor McGonagall. She'll probably speak with your head of house."

"What about Potter? He threatened me…you all heard him." He searched the crowd for supporters he could intimidate.

Hermione gave him a contemptuous look, which he returned with a cold hard stare.

Motioning to Sophie to come with him, Harry left Ron and Hermione to handle Malfoy. She followed him back to where Ginny was waiting. Neville and Luna had already left, but Ginny had saved them a carriage. After a quiet greeting, the three of them climbed inside, waiting silently for their other friends.

Ron and Hermione caught up to them shortly, bickering mildly as they climbed inside. "You just want to hex first and ask questions later. Really Ron, you're a prefect, too. Couldn't you have made him write lines or something? Why wait for me?"

"I keep forgetting about the prefect thing." Ron said, sounding sorry. The carriage began to move the short distance to the castle.

Everyone laughed except for Sophie who was seated between the two girls. Ginny tilted her head toward the solemn girl. Harry caught her meaning and shrugged. He didn't have a lot of confidence dealing with upset girls.

Hermione looked at Sophie and said, "Sorry about Malfoy. Don't take it personally. He's always perfectly horrible to me, too."

Wanting to reassure her, too, Harry said, "He doesn't know what he's talking about. You're not alone." He just meant to let her know that she had plenty of friends at Hogwarts. Realizing too late, that she was shaking, Harry bit his lip and cast an alarmed look at Ginny and Hermione.

Sophie didn't say anything, but when Hermione put her arm around the shaking girl, she gave a strangled cry and put her face in her hands. Pulling the distraught Slytherin onto her shoulder, Hermione muttered soothing sounds. Ginny patted the girl's back. The carriage stopped. They'd reached the castle.

Ginny said softly, "Go ahead. We'll catch up to you in the Great Hall…save us a seat." She nodded to them to leave.

Harry felt bad as he and Ron walked toward the entrance, passing the torches that were hissing from the snowfall. Obviously, he shouldn't have said anything when she was so upset. He hoped he would have a chance to apologize later although he'd probably just make her cry again.

"Don't think about it any more, mate. Crying women are definitely not your best thing. Let's get some dinner," Ron said, holding his stomach. Harry followed him into the Great Hall. The serving dishes had already filled with delicious food.

Weeks passed. It snowed quite a bit. The students at Hogwarts settled back into their routines. When the new moon came, Neville and Luna performed the Animus Libertas ceremony on Trevor, but he remained the slippery toad he'd always been. At least there was no sign of feathers.

No one saw much of Draco Malfoy. After his round of verbal attacks on the train, he hung out with his Slytherin cohorts instead of trying to stir up trouble.

Sophie Moon accepted Harry's apology and explained that she'd lost her parents to a Death Eater attack. She'd survived by hiding in a closet wearing a Disillusionment Charm, then climbing out over the rooftop and away before they destroyed her home entirely. Since she would be living with distant relatives from now on, she preferred to get back to Hogwarts quickly.

It was difficult for her, being in Slytherin. Harry imagined that rooming with Pansy Parkinson and grieving the loss of your parents would be a dreadful combination. But Sophie had friends outside of her house thanks to her association with the D.A. As time went on, she seemed to be healing as well as anyone could, given the circumstances.

The D.A. finished the preliminary rounds of the dueling tournament. Tonight would be the quarterfinals. Ginny was sitting on the floor in front of the fire in the Gryffindor common room. Harry sat behind her with one arm encircling her and the other holding the book he was reading. Ginny's head was resting contentedly against his chest while she read.

They had been like this for quite a while, reading and quietly talking. "Do you have much homework tonight, Gin?" Harry asked softly. He loved the way she felt leaning against him. She fit perfectly under his chin. Since it was now common knowledge at Hogwarts that the two teenagers were going out, they were seldom out of each other's company except for classes.

She looked up into his smiling green eyes and said, "I just have to finish that essay for Binns, the one I've been working on for a week. After the D.A. meeting, do you want to work in here?"

Before he could answer, Hermione came through the portrait hole and waved at them. She smiled in greeting as she crossed the room to where they were curled up by the fire. Then she sat down in a nearby chair and let out a deep sigh.

"Bad day, Hermione?" asked Harry.

"Snape," she said, as though her one word answer was enough to explain which, of course, it was.

"Ah… Did you come up with a plan for the independent project? Too bad Polyjuice is illegal." He was smiling as he teased her about the Potions project. She had been obsessing about it for days.

"Ha, ha, Harry. I haven't come up with a suitable project, but I will. No, Snape was on my case about that Memory Enhancing Potion we worked on in class. Apparently mine wasn't up to my usual standard. At least that was something, I guess. He thinks I have a usual standard. Anyway, I have to rebrew it. You know it took several days for the dragon claw to stew before we did the final steps. I have to start all over."

If he didn't know better, he would think that Hermione enjoyed having a Potions project to worry about. She was a good student in all her subjects, but Harry suspected that she enjoyed the "exact art and subtle science" of Potions because it challenged her, although she would probably never admit it.

Changing the subject, Hermione asked, "How is Quidditch training coming? Ron said he was practicing this afternoon, but, if I'm not mistaken, the two of you are reading in front of the fire instead of playing Quidditch. I'm no expert, of course. I could be wrong." She sounded uncharacteristically petulant.

Her eyes seemed focused on the fading winter sky outside the window, as though she didn't care about his answer, but Harry could tell she was holding her breath. Harry wondered if Ron's campaign to assert his manhood had begun to wear on her. In a kind tone, he said, "Ron's working out with our new back up goalkeeper in case we have a repeat of what happened in the Slytherin game. He wouldn't lie to you, Hermione."

"You're right of course." A slow smile spread over her face. "I guess it's just watching you two love birds all curled up in front of the fire. It makes me wish I was curled up, too." Harry had been unselfconsciously stroking the back of Ginny's hand while he was speaking to Hermione. At her comment, he stopped.

Of course, touching had become important to Harry. He'd grown up without kisses and hugs. The Dursleys were never affectionate toward him. Now that he had someone, he was enthralled. Every little bit of Ginny appealed to him, any part that wasn't clothed. Whether it was that soft area inside her wrists or a bumpy knee, he couldn't resist.

Ginny didn't seem to mind. Harry figured she was comfortable hugging and snuggling because she'd grown up in such a loving family. The physical closeness that she and Harry had begun to share was innocent. Neither was trying to advance it to an adult level. It was simply that they shared so much of their emotional selves that their growing physical closeness seemed quite natural.

Looking up at Hermione, Harry asked, "So you've been in the library looking for an interesting Potions project -- and?"

Shaking her head, Hermione let out a long sigh and said, "Potions is…" Harry never found out what Hermione considered Potions to be. She stopped in mid sentence and looked at Harry as if something just occurred to her, and said, "Actually, I came across another book about Merlin, but it wasn't very helpful. It's a pity you couldn't find out more from your ghost, Harry. Not that I'm suggesting you go back there."

Harry muttered something she couldn't quite catch, then seemed terribly interested in his book. Harry felt guilty lying to his friend, but he didn't want her, or anyone, to know what he'd found in the scrolls just yet.

Possibly because she misinterpreted his reluctance to speak, Hermione said, "I'm sorry we couldn't do more. I know you really want to know more about your family."

"Where did you find out how to make the torque?" Ginny asked as if the question suddenly occurred to her. Her graceful fingers flew to the delicate gold chain around her neck.

This was dangerous ground for him. If he told her how he knew, they might want to look at the scrolls themselves. Then they'd find out everything and he wasn't ready for that. "I found it in an old book," he said, shrugging diffidently. Then he turned to Hermione and said, "Did you post the results from the second round of the tournament?"

The change in subject worked. Hermione launched into a discussion of the D.A. tournament. So far, the matches had not inspired the tough rivalry between houses that had been predicted. Since it was an individual competition, people seemed to be rooting for their friends regardless of their house. Most matches went quickly.

Ron arrived, towering over them, wearing a soaking wet Quidditch outfit. His eyes were bright and his cheeks were red. "You're so lucky to have a place by the fire. I'm freezing!" He stared at Harry and Ginny curled up together, looking like he wanted to say more.

"Ah, Ron. Did you go jump in the lake to make your story more convincing? You needn't have bothered." Hermione said as she flounced past him on her way to the girl's dormitory.

Ron couldn't know that Hermione was upset about something Eloise Midgen had told her during Arithmancy. She'd said that Ron had been seen more than once meeting with Luna Lovegood. Once they were headed down the empty Charms corridor. The other time they were seen going into Greenhouse Twelve.

Looked very confused, Ron said, "She thinks I jumped in the lake. In the middle of January! What's got into her? She's barking mad, I tell you."

"Feeling all right, Ron? Maybe you should go see Madam Pomfrey." Harry was concerned, not just because Ron was his friend, but as Quidditch Captain. He didn't relish the idea of using their new backup keeper in the upcoming game against Ravenclaw.

Ron pinched his nose to stifle a sneeze. When it didn't come, he turned his attention to the two by the fire. "Thanks, I'll just take some Pepper up Potion. Ernie MacMillan enchanted snowballs to chase us while we practiced, but he cocked up the spell so the snow melted as it flew so basically, we were getting slapped with balls of water, very cold balls of water." His eyes narrowed as he looked at them and said, "You look very cozy. I hope Mum knows what you've been doing lately, Ginny."

She looked up at her brother and said loudly, "What are you implying, Ron? That I'm a scarlet woman?"

Harry was really uncomfortable with the turn of their conversation.

But Ginny continued. "I'm sure Mum would like to know the reason that Hermione is upset with you. You do realize she's upset with you, don't you, Ron? Maybe it's time to abandon your 'walk like a man' campaign. Why would you take advice about girls from George?" Ginny was skilled in turning the conversation around on her brother.

Ron sputtered his denial before heading off to the showers. When Harry and Ginny were left alone before the fire again, he carefully, almost tentatively trailed a few light kisses along her jaw line. "You're beautiful," he whispered.

She turned around in his arms. Her eyes searched his face, finally resting on his mouth. "Right back at you, Harry," she said before kissing him slowly and gently. She felt so perfect pressed up against him. Harry felt like he could just go on kissing her all day.

"Get a room," said Lavender Brown. Seamus laughed. The two were walking past the hearth on their way up to the boy's dormitory. Harry and Ginny didn't notice or hear them.

In a few minutes, they broke away. Ginny went to look for Hermione. Harry left to go to the D.A. meeting. He liked to get there early to set up the Room of Requirement. People soon began to filter into the meeting. They usually began by sitting on pillows on the floor and talking for a few minutes before beginning. Harry had to use a Sonorous Charm to make his voice loud enough to be heard over the crowd. Slightly embarrassed to be speaking so loudly, he went over the rules. Hermione had insisted that he recite the rules before each round.

She nodded her approval and then took over for him. "We also want to announce that next week's final duel will be set up in the Great Hall. After the match, Harry's agreed to give a fencing demonstration with his instructor and everyone is invited to stay for a reception afterwards. I think we all can see that this competition is meant to be friendly — except for the part where we hex each other. So please, feel free to invite non-members to the final duel and reception." Much to Harry's relief, she took over the rest of that part of the meeting. She split the pairs up for dueling and set the evening in motion.

The dueling itself was somewhat uneventful. Hermione won her match quickly and spent the evening tallying the results. Luna tried to help her, but was rebuffed. From across the room, Harry noticed that even though they both lost their matches, Ginny managed to get Sophie Moon to smile. Considering his girlfriend's proclivity for pranks, he wondered if any Slytherins would have blue hair the next day.

As he walked into the Gryffindor common room later, Harry congratulated his dorm mate warmly. "I'm really proud of you Neville. That bit with the fake wand was priceless." In the middle of his duel with Zach Smith, Neville had substituted his real wand with one of Fred and George's fake wands. Thinking he'd disarmed Neville, Zach had summoned Neville's 'wand' and waved it in triumph only to have it turn into a rubber chicken. It was the highlight of the evening.

In a serious tone, Neville asked, "Do you think the hexes we send are…strong enough, Harry? I mean do you think they would take down a real Death Eater." He looked worried.

"You fought them in the Department of Mysteries. They used some of the same spells, _Tarantallegra! _and _Stupefy!_"

Neville persisted. "I know, but…they also used that one on Hermione. We still don't even know what that was. And if it came to a real fight, I suppose they would use the Unforgivables."

Remembering his unsuccessful attempt to use the _Crucio!_ spell on Bellatrix, Harry said, "We don't want to be like them. We'll have to fight them, but on our own terms. To use those curses, we'd need to be…full of hate. It isn't worth it. Somehow we have to fight them in our own way, not try to beat them at their game. Does that make any sense?"

Interrupting the two of them, Hermione said, "It makes perfect sense to me, Harry. I think your right — just this once." She smiled at him. Her expression changed quickly as Ron put his arm across her shoulders. She looked at his hand then at his face with her lips pressed together. Then she said rather sharply, "I'll be turning in now. I have loads of extra reading to do for Arithmancy tomorrow. Good night." She pulled Ginny along with her up the stairs. Ginny waved weakly at Harry as she went.

Ron was left with a puzzled expression on his face. He'd almost pursed his lips for a goodnight kiss, but seeing her expression, he'd stopped. Neville looked away. Harry shrugged. And Ron said, "She's barking," and shook his head.

The boys settled into doing homework at a table near the fire. "This is nice, just us," said Ron.

Harry said, "Are you mad? I'd much prefer Hermione here to help with this Charms essay. And Ginny here…"

"I don't want to hear what you want Ginny here for. I've had quite enough of walking into the common room and seeing you with my sister. You're worse than Lavender and Seamus."

Neville shook his head. "No…nobody's worse than Lavender and Seamus. This afternoon, they were in our dormitory together."

Red faced that Ron would think he and Ginny were like Lavender and Seamus, Harry muttered, "I'm not doing anything with your sister for you to worry about, Ron."

"Keep it that way. Oh…let's just not talk about it." Ron ran his hands through his hair.

"You're just upset because Hermione's been a little distant lately." Harry couldn't help but notice that his two best friends had been bickering.

"I'm going to fix that." Ron looked around to see who could hear them. "I'm working on a present for Valentine's Day. She's going to just love it."

Neville asked, "Is it the project that you and Luna have been developing?" Ron nodded.

Privately thinking that Ginny was right, Ron had better stop taking the twin's advice, Harry turned to Neville. "Does anything happen in the greenhouses you don't know about?"

The portrait hole opened. Dean and Parvati walked in, holding hands. Catching sight of three of his roommates staring, Dean gave them a look which said, "Stop it." All three boys lowered their heads toward their books at once.

When Parvati and Dean parted, he made his way over to the study table. Ron started it. "Get lost on the way back to Gryffindor, Dean?"

"Take a detour to the Astronomy Tower?" Neville asked with what could only be described as a giggle.

At first, Harry was glad Ron was focusing on teasing Dean about Parvati. Then he realized he just couldn't concentrate, between the noisy common room and the way his dorm mates were talking. Even though it was long past curfew, he thought now might be a good time to slip away unnoticed. Figuring that Ginny had already had plenty of time to talk to Hermione, Harry went to his dorm and pulled out his mirror.

The tip of Ginny's nose in the little mirror wasn't how Harry wanted to speak with her. "What's up, Harry? Something on your mind."

"Are you up for a little rule breaking? How about using the Invisibility Cloak? I promise not to keep you up too late, but I want to talk in person." Harry had never suggested anything like this before. 'This has definite possibilities,' thought Ginny. They agreed to meet back in the Room of Requirement.

Charming her bed to look occupied, including a spell that made her pillow make sleeping noises, Ginny shut the drapes around her bed. She wasn't Fred and George's sister for nothing. Satisfied with her work, she pulled Harry's cloak around her and disappeared. In the common room, she created a distraction by setting off a charm to make pigeon noises by the far windows so that no one would notice the portrait hole opening and closing as she left.

She arrived at the Room of Requirement feeling free. The room looked much like the lounge at the Burrow. Harry was already sitting on the sofa. An open book was balanced on the armrest although he was staring into the fireplace. Without taking off the Invisibility Cloak, she gently removed the book. He failed to notice as though he was deep in thought. He continued to stare at the flames.

'What else can I get away with,' she thought, trying to suppress some of the naughtier ideas that surfaced. She settled for twirling the hair behind his right ear with one finger. He twitched and swatted at her hand. She barely removed it in time. He looked around suspiciously. "_Finite Incantatem!_" he said with a wave of his hand.

She tried unsuccessfully to stifle a giggle. "Ginny?" he asked, looking around at thin air.

"I should hope so," she answered, without pulling the cloak off.

"_Accio Ginny!_" he cried with a grin on his face. She knocked him onto his back, as her body became a projectile. Laughing and smiling, the two wrestled on the sofa for a moment before he succeeded in removing the Invisibility Cloak.

She had landed across his lap and was currently giggling at him with her eyes sparkling. Harry felt warm all the way to his fingertips. She was so much fun. He could wrestle with her all night.

Her laughter faded into a warm smile and she sat up. "Did you just want me to come here so you could tickle me mercilessly, Harry?" She moved to sit next to him on the sofa. "Or did you have something else on your mind?" she asked in a husky whisper before brushing her lips across his cheek lightly. She stopped there, breathing softly, her face close to his.

He groaned his approval. "You have no idea what you do to me." His voice sounded husky, too. In one swift movement, he had her pinned underneath him and was paying her back, kissing along her collarbone. "You… are… so… sweet," murmured as he moved to her neck.

Just as the warmth of his kisses threatened to overwhelm her, he suddenly brought his mouth over hers, his tongue demanding entrance, exploring, tasting. A jolt of energy went through her as he deepened the kiss. She could feel how much he needed her.

A loud snap from the fire brought their heads apart, bringing the two back to their surroundings. They were both breathing heavily. Ginny's clothes were disheveled. "I'm sorry, Gin. What must you be thinking? I didn't ask you here so that I could…" His eyes were pleading with her to understand him. He ran his hand through his messy hair.

"You don't have to apologize, Harry…but maybe we should stop." She put her hand up as if to say stop. "Why did you ask me here? You said you wanted to talk."

His blood was still up from kissing her and she was biting her lower lip in that way that drove him mad. Harry concentrated on calming himself down. Once he felt composed enough, he said, "I don't want to make any mistakes with you, Ginny. You're too important to me."

She knew he believed every word he was saying. "So you wanted to talk about us, Harry? You know you're important to me, too."

He moved to one of the chairs nearby, hoping he could think more clearly. "I have been keeping something to myself…it's…I found these in the cave." He pulled the scrolls out of his rucksack.

She gave him puzzled look. "What are they? Why didn't you show them to Hermione?"

Running his hand through his hair, Harry said, "At first, I was distracted. I had -- we all had -- other things on our minds. Then, after I read the scrolls, well I wasn't sure — I'm still not sure — that I want everyone to know."

Looking at her trusting expression, Harry continued. "Hermione's translation spell worked flawlessly. The scrolls were written by someone named Owain. They are sort of his journal. Sometimes he writes about his life and sometimes he writes notes about stuff he was working on.

"So what was his life like?" Ginny asked. She smiled as Harry handed her one of the scrolls.

"Apparently, he grew up without a father, living with his mother and grandfather, who was a craftsman, near what is now the town of Carmarthen. His mother and grandfather were Muggles, but he was a wizard and…and he became convinced that Merlin was his father. Maybe because he was the only wizard that he knew. Apparently Merlin did become his friend and teacher when he reached — well, he was about as old as we are when he started to live with Merlin. He used the cave as a place to study and apprentice. He lived in the room that Ron and I found."

Eyes bright with curiosity, Ginny asked, "Is that why the ghost recognized you then? You must look like this Owain."

Harry nodded, then shook his head. "Sure…maybe…I don't know about that. I can't be sure since I was only there such a short time. And that ghost, Niniane, seemed really off her head. Anyway…he gave up the woman he loved in order to free Merlin from the cave. He didn't give all the details in his account of those events. But he did explain about the torch. And he did write down how to construct it."

"You have to construct the torch? It's not just something for you to find?" Ginny had always had this image of an especially elaborate torch with Celtic runes on the sconce or something.

"I can't make the torch without a branch from a tanglewood tree. According to Neville, they don't exist."

The fire crackled as both of them sat, deep in thought. "Why don't you want to talk about this with Ron and Hermione?" Ginny asked sweetly.

Harry knew what she meant. His friends had been with him every step of the way. They deserved to know everything. "I know…we wouldn't have found this much out without Hermione's help. But…Voldemort was in that cave. Not all that long before we were. If someone is going to risk facing Death Eaters, it's going to be me, and me alone."

Now she was confused, "Why does anyone need to face Death Eaters? You're not going back…are you?"

"How else am I going to find a tanglewood branch? There must be some stored somewhere in the cave. I just need to find out where. And the place opens up to me. I don't think anyone else can really help. Ron ended up sitting in the main room last time covered with the Invisibility Cloak." His forehead knitted into a dark scowl as he thought of Ron risking his life while he sorted through the things on that ancient desk and talked to a ghost. That's why he couldn't tell his friend about these plans. Ron would want to watch his back. He'd insist.

Looking at her scowl, he continued. Sounding hopeful, he said, "You could be my back up again. By myself, I can Apparate to the cave and explore it while I'm invisible. If I get into trouble, I'll contact you. But it probably won't be necessary. Who will even know?"

Ginny shook her head. "Last time, they seemed to know the minute you left the castle. Maybe they have some way of keeping track. Something like the Marauder's Map."

Thinking she made a lot of sense, Harry nodded and said, "So we'll wait for the next Hogsmeade trip." Harry looked at her, eyes pleading with her to agree. She didn't seem convinced. "Anything's possible if you have enough nerve…aren't you the one who told me that?"

She couldn't help but smile at him quoting something she said almost a year ago. In a quiet serious tone, she said, "There's more that you're not telling me."

"Just the details on how to construct the torch." He shifted in his chair uncomfortably.

Ginny persisted. "You're not saying what the torch does. Why do you need it so much? The castle is pretty well lit, Harry. What makes this torch important?"

Nodding solemnly, Harry said, "The torch was an invention of Merlin himself. It keeps everyone within its light safe from harm -- that's any kind of harm — physical or magical. It works like our torques only much more powerful.

"Are you sure you'll be able to make it…if you can find a tanglewood branch?" she asked.

"I have to try," he said simply as though it was the only practical solution.

Ginny looked thoughtful for a moment, then she said, "Of course, I'll help you…but I think you should tell Ron and Hermione. They would be a big help."

He was starting to feel really tired. Now that she'd agreed, the long day and the warm fire caught up with him. He sank back in the chair and relaxed. "I know they would, but…I have to go to the cave alone and I don't feel like arguing. Besides what right have I to keep dragging everyone into my problems. It seems like there are too many 'what ifs'…I'll tell them if we find the tanglewood. Let's keep the rest a secret for now."

"I wish…we could just curl up here." Ginny began. In the firelight, her eyes appeared wide and dark and her lips were still slightly swollen from earlier. She looked young and vulnerable although Harry knew she had plenty of inner strength.

He stood up in front of her and pulled her to her feet. Brushing her hair out of her face, he kissed her lightly and said, "I think you underestimate how I feel about you. I'll walk you back to Gryffindor." He reached for her hand as she slipped on the Invisibility Cloak to return to their dormitories.

The following afternoon, Harry was standing outside the staff lounge, about to knock on the door, when he stopped short at the sound of raised voices. Professor Snape's deep voice sounded uncharacteristically sincere. "I can't help you. You have my deepest sympathy, but there is no cure…."

A voice that Harry couldn't recognize said something. Whatever the response was couldn't be heard because one of the stone gargoyle's flanking the door said, "It's not nice to eavesdrop, young man." The other gargoyle was shaking its head at him.

Casting a quick _Immobulus_! Charm on both statues, Harry heard Snape again. This time, his voice was filled with its usual disdain. "Potter again. Why does everything revolve around him?"

The next voice was Moody's, but whatever he had to say was unintelligible. He could make out Snape's response. "So what is Potter -- your secret weapon? From what I've seen you won't be able to train him. He's no match for anyone."

Dumbledore spoke next, loud and clear, "Severus, please listen to an old man's warning. Let go of the past. If you carry your hatred around with you, it'll burn like a fire inside your heart. In the end it will do more damage to you than to anyone."

"Forgive me, Headmaster, but you're blinded by your pity for the boy. Potter will never be of any use to our cause. I don't know why the Dark Lord seeks him so relentlessly. He's reckless and arrogant." Snape's footsteps were approaching the door.

Embarrassed at the thought of being caught eavesdropping by the cynical Potions Master, Harry quickly cast a Disillusionment Charm and blended into the background. He held his breath and pressed against the wall. Snape's eyes narrowed suspiciously, as he briefly examined the frozen gargoyles. Then he walked quickly down the corridor and out of sight.

Reaching his hand out to finally knock on the door, Harry heard Dumbledore again, speaking in a regretful tone. "Only the weak cannot find it within themselves to forgive."

Moody answered, "Severus only sees what he wants to see. He expects Harry to be ready at sixteen…We're doing what we can, Albus. The rest will come in time."

Harry knocked loudly and opened the door wide enough to poke his head in the room. "Ah…come in," said Dumbledore as he conjured a chair for Harry next to Moody's. Harry was surprised to see his fencing instructor there as well. He hadn't heard him speak before he entered the room.

"Dobby said you wanted to meet with me, sir?"

"We've just been discussing your progress in Defense Against the Dark Arts, Harry. That's why Professor Moody and Mr. Powell have joined us. Sherbet lemon?" Professor Dumbledore asked, offering Harry a small dish of the yellow candies.

"Thank you, no…Professor."

"You've been taking your training very seriously this year, that is, your physical training as well as your studies. Still running in the mornings, Harry?"

"It helps clear my head. And it helps me keep up with Rhys…fencing is very physical."

Rhys nodded and said, "Your reflexes and mental sharpness are improving. Your control is good…."

Moody interrupted in his low gravely voice. "No one is going to come after you with a sword. I think it's time for you to practice wizard dueling, but there are no students on your level and I'm too old for you to keep knocking me down."

Harry looked to see Dumbledore's reaction to that. While Harry regularly bested the older Auror in their duels, it never really seemed fair. Professor Moody had a few physical handicaps.

Speaking as though Harry would be delighted by his news, Dumbledore said, "Professor Moody has arranged to borrow some Auror training dummies. You can begin with them. Later on, perhaps you can train with some of the Aurors from the Order."

Paling at the thought of dueling someone at the top of his game like Kingsley Shacklebolt, Harry noticed that his fencing instructor was staring at the floor. He looked rather glum. Harry asked, "You're not suggesting that I stop fencing are you?" Rhys had a mother and sister to take care for. Maybe he was worried about the loss of income.

The headmaster smiled as he carefully looked at Harry through the little glasses perched on the end of his nose. "Unfortunately for us, Mr. Powell has to cut back your fencing instruction for personal reasons. You'll only meet once a week. You can fill out your schedule working with the training dummies."

Harry smiled. "That's a relief. I'm not nearly as good as Rhys. I need loads more training." He wanted to ask why Rhys needed to cut back his hours, but worried that it might have something to do with Snape's mysterious words about there being no cure. The young Welshman looked healthy enough. Anyway Harry didn't want anyone to know he'd been eavesdropping so he kept his curiosity to himself despite the fact that the others were looking at him expectantly.

Breaking the silence, Moody said, "So…the word is that you've been using the sword you found in the cave last summer to blow the doors off the practice room."

Too late, Harry remembered that Dumbledore had never said he could use the sword, in fact he had specifically asked him to put the sword away. "I…I'm sorry, Professor. I meant to say something. I know you wanted to check the sword out a little more, but I have figured out how to use it…It's quite powerful."

"I imagine it is. Are you sure that you can control it, Harry?" Dumbledore sat back in his chair, steepling his long fingers and considering the teenager.

Harry relaxed, thinking that the Headmaster seemed ready to give him the benefit of the doubt. "I'll be able to control it better with more practice. When I started, I blew the doors in the practice room off a few times, but I think I'm doing better." Harry really liked the weapon.

Rhys smirked. "Why don't you show them, Harry. Blow up that little bud vase on the mantle without knocking a hole in the wall."

With a characteristic twinkle in his eye, the Headmaster intervened. "That's quite all right. We'll take your word for it." Perhaps he was remembering when Harry had smashed the things in his office.

"Are there other things we should discuss, Harry, besides the sword? Have you discovered anything further about the contents of your box?" Dumbledore asked.

This was unexpected. Except for his close friends, no one had mentioned the box in months. Harry shook his head, looking away as he thought about the secrets he was keeping from Dumbledore. It didn't feel right, especially when the Headmaster was obviously trying to help him prepare for what he would have to face. But they weren't just his secrets. Right now, he couldn't say anything without getting Ron into trouble, perhaps expelled.

Aloud he said truthfully, "I still don't know what some of those things are. But Hermione successfully translated the book. And I'm sure Hagrid told you about the torque."

Seeing that the headmaster still had him fixed in an inquiring stare, Harry tried to throw him off the track. "Do you have any ideas, sir? Er…what do you think this is?" He held out the black phoenix statue that he'd been keeping in his pocket.

Dumbledore took the figure into his hand and shook his head. "Nothing springs to mind, Harry. A phoenix is a firebird. Of course, just as the phoenix design on your sword captures something of the spirit of a phoenix, this could be a similar item." He handed it back to Harry.

"Thank you, sir…And I'm sorry, I should have told you about the sword." Harry waved his hand and transfigured his cloak pin back into the sword. He laid it out on the table in front of them for inspection. "Did you think of some sort of test to run on it? Make sure it's not full of dark magic or something?"

Harry searched the faces of the adults around him. They all looked grim. Moody said in a low voice, "You're forgetting to use your wand again, Potter."

Harry asked, "What difference does it make? Everyone here knows I can do some Wandless Magic." Realizing that his question made him sound really naïve, Harry became defensive. "I don't go around doing it. I carry my wand all the time." He ran his hand through his hair nervously.

"But you don't need your wand much anymore." Dumbledore said. It was a statement not a question.

"I don't think I do," Harry admitted. He was puzzled. Dumbledore was the one who had been teaching him how to focus his magic without a wand, now he seemed concerned because he had succeeded.

"I think it shouldn't go beyond these walls that you're working with this enchanted sword and doing Wandless Magic," Moody grumbled. "Do your friends know?"

"Just my close friends…of course they know I don't need my wand. And…I've told them about the sword, but they've never seen me use it. It was Hermione's idea for me to wear it as a cloak pin."

The three older men looked at each other. Harry wondered what they were worried about. Who cared if Voldemort found out that his powers were increasing? It was only to be expected for a wizard of his age.

The day arrived for the dueling club final. Professor Dumbledore wasn't able to attend, but many other teachers were there, including Rhys Powell who was there to give a fencing demonstration with Harry. When someone in the D.A. had first proposed the idea, Harry had refused. But word spread and he'd eventually succumbed to peer pressure. They set up a dueling platform in the Great Hall like the one that Professor Lockhart had used in their dueling club second year.

Hermione Granger and Cho Chang were slated to fight the final wizard duel. Although he wasn't happy about being knocked out of the tournament and he knew Fred and George were unlikely to let him live it down, Ron was secretly proud that Hermione had won their duel in the semi-final. He and almost every other male sixth year and above were really looking forward to the final confrontation. Once they recovered from the shock of two pretty girls reaching the final, they'd all realized the entertainment value.

The girls did not disappoint. It was a knock down drag out fight. Sweat pouring off her face, her shirt torn open and a purple welt forming across her shoulder, Hermione emerged the winner. The huge grin across her face faded as she realized that Cho was still sprawled across the floor unconscious.

Ginny and Madam Pomfrey managed to revive Cho who gracefully accepted second place. Then the party began. Food appeared buffet style and everyone gathered to congratulate both girls. Someone piped in some music. Laughter, music and pleasant conversation filled the Great Hall.

Keeping their hands hidden in the folds of their robes, Harry subtly slid his hand into Ginny's. He whispered in her ear, "So is this how you imagined it?" The tournament and the reception had been her idea.

She whispered back hiding her face with a curtain of hair. "Everyone seems to be getting along…the food is delicious…the best girl won…things seems to be going according to plan." Ginny smiled softly.

Ron tapped Harry on the shoulder, seeming a little nervous. "I just thought you might want to know that the Slytherins have arrived."

"We've been through this…the Slytherins are as welcome as everybody else, Ron. How can we pull together if we exclude people?"

Before Harry could work up to full lecture mode, Ron tilted his head meaningfully to the buffet table where Crabbe, Goyle and Millicent Bulstrode were currently helping themselves to large portions. Surprised to see them at a D.A. function, if not surprised by their interest in food, Harry gave them a calculating look. "At least it's just them…not the full selection of junior Death Eaters. Eh…?"

Ron's response was to glare just over Harry's shoulder. Turning around he came face to face with Terrence Nott and Draco Malfoy. "Having fun, Potter? We thought we'd accept your invitation to this little tea party…not much of a show though with just a couple of girls waving their wands around." He surveyed the room with disdain.

Harry presumed that had the desired effect. They were beginning to draw a crowd. A bit louder, he said, "Where are your manners, Potter. You should be offering us some more entertainment. We are your guests after all." Before Harry could answer, he said quickly to all those assembled, "Who'd like to see Potter and I fight a duel?" The crowd just murmured. The atmosphere had gone from pleasant to tense in the blink of an eye.

Two girls who were standing next to the blond boy gave him identical derisive sneers, as though he forgot to shower today. Malfoy didn't seem to notice. He leaned toward Harry and said, "Don't tell me you're scared, Potter?"

Without taking his eyes off Malfoy, Ron said, "Don't bother with this. He's not worth it."

Smirking, Harry turned to Ron and said, "Then again, it might be fun."

"All right. Just promise me that you'll beat him."

Harry looked back at the insufferable blond boy. "Is there really any doubt?" he asked.

"You're pretty sure of yourself, Potter."

"I don't know why you bother with this sort of thing, Malfoy."

The crowd of students who'd gathered round whispered to each other. Ron and Ginny smiled. Hermione looked at Malfoy doubtfully and said, "He can't duel until he learns to count to three. Have been studying, Malfoy?" Some of the crowd laughed quietly as she held up her fingers and slowly counted.

Malfoy turned red in the face and looked like he was going to let loose with a stream of invectives.

Moody stumped through the crowd and said, "Time to show off your fencing skills, Harry."

Looking questioningly at Rhys who was right behind the professor, Harry shrugged and said, "I'm ready."

Rhys asked, "Sabres?"

Harry nodded. "You're in luck, Malfoy. There's no time for a duel. You're just going to have to settle for watching the fencing demonstration. But we have some lovely biscuits over at the buffet. Maybe Ginny would get one for you."

He smiled at her over Draco's head. She laughed and said, "Don't worry, Malfoy. They're my special recipe, not your mother's…."

"And that's supposed to reassure me," Draco began.

Harry didn't hear the rest of that conversation because Rhys returned with the charmed blades. Tossing one to Harry, he leapt onto the dueling platform and playfully shouted, "En garde!"

"Hold on!" Harry said, taking his robe and jumper off and dropping them on the floor. Then he made a couple of warm up motions with the blade after climbing on the dais. "Where did you get this?" he asked. It didn't handle quite like the other practice sabres they'd used and it had a different handle.

"I grabbed the first ones I could find," Rhys said.

Harry laughed as he rolled up his sleeves "We're going to have to be careful not to fall off." They usually fought using the whole floor. With his wand, Harry conjured a magical scoreboard so even those who'd never seen a fencing match before would have a vague idea of how things were going. The crowd gathered around as Harry and his instructor, both in their shirtsleeves, held their weapons in front of them in a salute.

The fencing demonstration quickly became a pitched battle. Neither of them held back. Their sabres clashed brightly. Both swordsmen were evenly matched, fit and trim. Their footwork was agile and their blade movements were powerful. Rhys and Harry appeared to be enjoying the fight as well. The magical point count stayed fairly even.

After a particularly long foray, Harry stepped back for a moment as though to rest and Rhys thrust forward hoping to end the match. The moment he did, Harry twisted around low and parried the blow, catching Rhys' blade at just the right angle to send it flying into the crowd. Holding his sabre point to Rhys' throat, Harry shrugged his shoulders. The match was over.

The crowd broke into shouts and applause. Grinning Harry stepped forward to shake his hand. Rhys stopped short. Pointing to Harry's arm, he asked, "How'd that happen?" Harry had a long red streak of blood on his forearm.

"It's just a scratch. It doesn't hurt," Harry said with a shrug.

Looking concerned, Rhys conjured a soft white cloth and pressed it against the cut. "I thought I charmed all of the equipment. Sorry, I must have missed something." He smiled at his pupil. "At least you're getting pretty good at the defensive work."

"Pretty good? Want to go another round?" Harry asked, feeling cocky about beating his fencing master. He reset the scoreboard and gave him a questioning look.

Rhys smiled at his pupil. He just shook his head and began to roll his sleeves back down, refastening the cuffs. He shook his head at Harry and said, "You're getting sure of yourself."

Knowing that he was usually lucky if their matches ended in a draw, Harry grinned and said jokingly, "It's Ginny's biscuits; they go straight to my head." He knew the red head was right behind him.

She ducked under Harry's free left arm so it was draped across her shoulders. "Good show, Harry. I've never seen you fence before. You should sell tickets." Her eyes shone with admiration.

Zach Smith brought back the sabre that Harry had sent flying off into the crowd. Handing the weapon to Rhys, he thanked them both for an interesting exhibition. A few other people passed them, patting Harry on the back and saying nice, appreciative things. Thanking them and smiling, he turned his attention back to Rhys and Ginny. He thought Rhys looked tired. It was sort of late in the evening for fencing.

He handed him the blade he was holding and said, "Oh…here's this…and thanks." Remembering the white cloth, he handed that back, too. Seeing the blood on it, he pulled his wand out and cast a cleaning spell. "Sorry about that."

Rhys gave him an odd look and said, "I'm sorry, too. You better get that arm looked at." Nodding to Ginny, he said goodnight and walked off through the crowd.

Eyes widening as she noticed the cut, Ginny scolded him for not saying anything. Then she quickly healed the wound. She'd learned quite a bit working for Madam Pomfrey.

Harry looked at her appreciatively, "I guess it comes in handy having a girlfriend who knows how to heal things."

The crowd had thinned out considerably. Harry took Ginny's hand and the two of them went to find Hermione. They found her at the buffet table. "Congratulations! I knew you'd win." Harry said enthusiastically.

She turned toward them with a huge, self-satisfied grin and let Harry sweep her into a big hug. The drink in her hand slopped onto the floor. "You're so sweet to say so. I assure you -- Cho had me worried -- several times."

Ginny looked a little smug herself. "I knew you could take her."

"Thanks, but right now, I'm just terribly thirsty. I missed the food — just too busy being congratulated." Hermione smiled drowsily and took a long drink from the goblet she was holding.

Worry transforming his features, Harry said, "Wait…" Moody's paranoia was rubbing off on him as he watched the wet spot on the floor, where her drink had just spilled, produce a silvery mist. "What are you drinking?"

"What is it?" She yawned broadly and held up her goblet. "It's punch, I think…whew…" She shook her head. "I can barely keep my eyes open."

Ron stepped over and said, "I better help you up those stairs. You've had a long day." Hermione set her cup down on the buffet table and leaned gratefully on his tall, strong form.

The pleasant feeling of his girlfriend snuggling up against him was replaced with panic when she said, "Maybe you better carry me…." and slid to the floor.

Ginny dropped to her side. Lifting her friend's eyelids, she said, "Get Madam Pomfrey." When Ron stared at Hermione unable to move, she said more urgently, "Now!"

As Ron hurried away, Harry grabbed the goblet. Putting it under his nose, he sniffed the remaining contents. It just smelled like punch to him.

Professor Snape returned with Madam Pomfrey who immediately joined Ginny at Hermione's side. "I think there was something in this, Professor." Harry held the goblet out to Snape.

Snatching it from his hands, Snape said, "Haven't you had enough grandstanding for one evening, Potter? Must you have another drama? It's getting late." Despite his sarcasm, the Potions Master repeated Harry's action of sniffing the contents.

Moody arrived, and said grumpily, "Constant vigilance includes food, Potter. Probably had some sort of sleeping potion. Maybe something with asphodel or hellebore."

"Would any of that be fatal, Professor?" Harry asked quietly, not wanting Ron or Ginny to overhear. They were leaning over Hermione, trying to help Madam Pomfrey.

Rolling his eyes, Snape said, "That question speaks volumes about your potions abilities, Potter. You two are perfect for one another. Both utterly paranoid. No wonder you took him on as your assistant. I'll have to take this to my classroom to examine it." Looking disdainfully at the unconscious form of Hermione laid out on the stretcher, he said, "But…I imagine I'll find that this punch is just punch and Ms. Granger is perhaps exhausted from her efforts earlier this evening…Or perhaps she's in a swoon over your fencing display." He left in his usual swirl of black robes.

Too tired to react to Snape's sarcasm, Harry looked at the tableau of Madam Pomfrey floating Hermione's stretcher out of the Great Hall with Ginny on one side and Ron on the other. He couldn't help but wonder about the evening ending with such a bizarre twist. Questions ran through his head. Was this deliberate? Had someone played their hand and attacked a Muggle born right here? If someone could strike in the middle of the Great Hall, what would that mean to people? Hogwarts would cease to be considered a bastion of safety.

If only it was clear what had happened. In the absence of a Dark Mark appearing in the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall, Harry could only guess what evil forces were at work. He stared at the floor where the punch had spilled earlier, imagining the silvery mist he'd noticed before, twisting into the familiar, but deadly green skull.

He heard the clump of Moody's wooden leg. For a moment the two of them stared in silence at what was, after all, only a wet spot on the floor. Then Moody thumped him on the back and said, "Better go with your friends, Potter. I'll get Dumbledore."

To Be Continued…

A/N: Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

shotgunn: It's good to hear someone appreciated bit about Harry and Ron misunderstanding each other. Thanks for reviewing!

Nightwing509: Thanks for saying you liked the family finding out. I figured Harry was due some embarrassing moments since Ginny has been through quite a few in her time. Percy — ARGH! Thanks for writing a review!

skeeter007: Thanks for noticing. The answer is yes and no. I had the blue hair prank down as a way for Ron to figure things out, but I decided it would be more fun to set her brothers on Harry all at once. Thanks for writing!

Rosepetal 13: Thanks so much for your review! A ferret covered in cheez whiz is a lovely image for Percy.

Lourdes1: Thanks for your thoughtful comments. There are a lot of story threads to keep track of at this point so…thanks. I am trying to update quickly, but this was a tough chapter for some reason. Thanks for reviewing!

Gryphonmistress: I thought that might have been what you meant, but thanks for clarifying. I appreciate all your nice comments about the last chapter. I love the twins. Too bad they left school. Thanks for writing a review!

Jack-A-Roe: Thanks for your review! I like the image of Ron and Percy fighting it out while Harry's giving Ginny her present in the garden.

Orion The Hunter: Thanks so much for reviewing!

Ted M. Hammett: Thanks for all your nice comments. I agree Percy would have made a good Slytherin. Where's his courage? Ginny's one of my favorite characters in OoTP. Thanks for your review!

Iluvatar: Thanks! Sorry to be slow.

Nathan Postmark: Percy's good at being a git, isn't he? Thanks for reviewing!

Mrs. Sakura Potter: Thanks. Percy does seem…expendable. Harry is too curious to stay away from the cave. Thanks for writing a review!

GhostMagic 19: Thanks for your review! We used a trail of mini marshmallows to capture the raccoons one by one. They've been relocated in a nearby forest. There were five of them! I still think the little ones were cute.

Butler: I agree they'll have to watch their step around the Weasley brothers for a while. Even Ron would have something to say if Harry does anything to hurt his sister. Thanks for writing a review!

dishant: Thanks for your kind words. Now it's back to school and on with the mystery. Thanks for reviewing!

Wytil: Christmas in July. It wasn't planned. It just worked out that way. Thanks for writing a review!

phang: I thought JKR's flying motorbike sounded like fun. Thanks for reviewing!

Cutiegurl 2288: Thanks for all your nice comments. I will try to update faster. It's just so…sunny. I appreciate you writing a review!

bluemoon52292: Thanks for all your encouragement. I did reread my reviews this week when I was having trouble with this chapter. It does help to have kind people writing them. Thanks. I have about six more chapters storyboarded, but the way things go that might be slightly more. Thanks for asking!

Musicfan013: Thanks for reviewing! My neighbors cats are sleeping easier since we dealt with the raccoons.

Tarnished Gold Avernus — Ba: Thanks for all of your reviews! You're right. The growth spurt was a stretch, but it's fiction. The twins could easily "change" Harry. Perhaps that's the real reason he gave them all that gold. Thanks for writing a review!

athenakitty: I don't think they'd bother to enlist Percy in the Death Eater ranks. Like Fudge, he seems easily manipulated. Thanks for reviewing!

SilverWarrior: Percy is indeed a jerk! Thanks for writing a review!

Hey: Yes it was. When I was younger, I used to hike to "Ghost Towns" in Colorado. The buildings were often destroyed with trees growing inside the remnants of the foundation. That's what I was going for. I'll try to fix it. Thanks for reviewing!

katepotter13: Thanks for your kind words. I am trying to update quickly. Thanks for writing a review!

Kallan Myers: Thanks for saying that. I appreciate it. Thanks for reviewing!

Princess Skywalker Organa: Thanks for reviewing!

coolchick207: Thanks for your nice comments. I'll look for the mistakes. There's always something spell check misses. Thanks for reviewing!

KandiG85: Thanks for saying that and for your recommendation. I love James and Lily. Thanks for reviewing!

corwin: Thanks. I appreciate it. Thanks for writing!

hp4ashley: I don't have an email thing, but I will try to keep updating. Thanks for reviewing!

Mr. Spock: I loved all of your reviews. You should post the pureblood inbreeding explanation that you wrote somewhere for more people to read. That was really good. And I'm pretty sure it explains Crabbe and Goyle. I'm glad you agree with me about horny teenagers. Remus, if he ever really let loose, could be horrifying. I just love him. I wonder if JKR will include more about Narcissa now that Lucius is locked up. Last, but not least… Fart Hell? Hart Fell is a real place. Try googling it and you'll find pictures pretty easily. I wonder what happens if you google your version. Thanks for reviewing!

Lion of Gryffindor: Thanks. I agree that Harry and Ginny fluff is good. More action is planned. They will be returning to both the cave and Hart Fell. Thanks for reviewing!

Preston 78: Thanks for your nice comments. I appreciate your writing a review!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	24. Searching for Answers

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: So sorry for the delay! I've been on vacation with my large extended family. It was fun and I love them, but no one wanted me to spend my time writing. After being forced to write late at night when no one would notice or object, it was really nice to come back and read reviews from people who would like me to keep writing. Thanks to all of you who reviewed! I really love to read what people have to say.

Chapter 24

Searching for Answers

Walking purposefully through the dark hallways toward the Potions classroom, Harry marveled at the contrast between the bright, sunlit Saturday morning, and the shadowy existence of those who lived in the dungeons of the castle. No wonder Snape seldom cracked a smile.

Harry had finished his morning routine early so he could corner the Potions Professor before meeting Ginny to go to Hogsmeade. Furious and frustrated with the evasive answers Snape had given him for the last ten days, Harry was determined to pin him down. Practicing with his sword against Moody's training dummies had helped him work off some of his anger at Hermione's situation, but this morning he wanted answers.

Every time he thought of Hermione in her infirmary bed, struggling to keep awake, he felt like strangling someone. She didn't deserve this. Neither did Ron whose attempts at keeping her spirits up were becoming noticeably strained.

The week and a half since the attack on Hermione were full of tension for everyone. The success of the dueling tournament was overshadowed by news of the attack on its champion. No one could deny that someone had maliciously spiked Hermione's goblet with a mysterious --and potentially lethal -- substance. With a regimen of potions, she was able to wake up and move about, but she tired easily and often fell asleep in the middle of her sentences. Unless an antidote could be found, the Healers feared she would become progressively worse until, one day, she fell into a long deep sleep.

Crossing the empty Potions classroom, Harry could see a crack of light coming from under the door of the office. The sound of muffled voices within stopped when he knocked loudly and shouted, "Professor Snape! Are you in there!"

A long moment of silence followed, then the door opened abruptly to show an angry Snape. Greasy hair falling on either side of his face, his eyes black in the torchlight, he looked down his hooked nose at Harry as if he were examining an insect. Then he said slowly, "What do you want, Potter?"

His jaw set, Harry glowered back at him. "You said you'd have that potion analyzed by the weekend…sir. It's the weekend."

"And you think you can come to me and demand to know what I've discovered. Leave the problem to the professionals, Potter. There's little that your flustered and floundering heroics can contribute." He returned to his desk and sat down.

A flash of green light coming from the hearth caught Harry's attention. "Ah…good morning." said Professor Dumbledore as he stepped from the fireplace. "How fortunate that you're already here, Harry. Perhaps we can ease your mind about your friend. Professor Snape sent word early this morning that he has identified the ingredients in the potion that has caused Miss Granger's illness." Smiling benignly at Harry and Snape, who were back to scowling at one another, he calmly brushed the soot off his sumptuous dark blue robes.

Snape sighed and explained slowly. "Not surprisingly, Miss Granger somehow ingested a potion not easily brewed or obtained. It appears to be the basic recipe for the Draught of Peace. The main ingredient is hellebore, but it also contained a far deadlier component."

"Which is?" Harry asked impatiently. Snape made it sound like Hermione wanted to drink something like this.

Raising his eyebrows in rebuke, Snape said, "Breath of Nundu. You do know what a Nundu is, don't you Potter?" His voice was laced with condescension.

Harry had to admit he wasn't too sure. "I remember reading something, but I've never seen one. What's wrong with their breath?" He ran his hand through his hair nervously. His concern for his friend outweighed the embarrassment of admitting to Snape that he didn't know about Nundus.

With a look toward the Headmaster that seemed to say, 'do you see what I have to put up with?' Snape continued. "Even Hagrid wouldn't have such an animal. They live in the jungles of Africa and their breath is deadly enough to destroy an entire village. It infects the blood. In it's undiluted form it is quite contagious. Lucky for us, someone put it in Miss Granger's punch."

Harry pressed his lips together and unconsciously held his breath, trying to calm down. His heart was pounding, but he was determined not to explode at Professor Snape. He didn't want to give the irritating man the satisfaction. The air seemed to fill with pent up energy.

Snape actually looked satisfied with himself. "Feel better?" he asked Harry.

"That's enough, Severus," Dumbledore chided. Turning to Harry, he said soothingly, "I'm sure a cure will be found. The potion could not have contained a fatal dose or Ms. Granger would never have responded as well as she has to the treatment so far." The air was still crackling so Dumbledore said, "Calm yourself, Harry.

"I am calm," he answered although he knew he didn't fool either of them. "Who would have such a thing — this essence of Nundu or whatever it's called?" he asked in a low voice. Searching the older men's faces for a reaction, he thought they exchanged knowing looks. Neither one seemed eager to answer his question so he shouted. "Hermione needs our help. If you don't know exactly what to do, the person that gave it to her does. Besides you, Professor, who would know about a potion like that?" He stressed the word Professor sarcastically.

His face a mask of calm, Snape answered, "Can you not answer that for yourself?"

"Death Eaters. Obviously…" Harry stopped himself before he said something about Snape being a Death Eater. He knew his anger wasn't getting him anywhere. He tried to calm down and think of Hermione and Ron. They needed his help. He concentrated on his breathing.

Tonks' head appeared in the fireplace, "Wotcher, Harry? Is Professor Dumbledore there?"

The Headmaster left after a brief fireside conversation with the Auror, leaving Harry still staring at Snape. Ignoring Harry's stare, the Potions Master lifted a black quill and turned it idly in his hand as he attempted to focus on some of the paperwork in front of him.

After a few moments of silence, Harry said quietly, "I just want to help my friends, Professor." His tone was polite and almost pleading. Helping his friends was more important than his pride or his anger.

Snape stopped writing as Harry spoke, but he didn't lift his eyes from the paper in front of him. "You're in over your head, Potter."

Harry's answer was quick and impassioned. "Maybe I am, but I can't just do nothing…Tell me who you think did this…please!"

Absentmindedly picking up a jar of dead cockroaches, Snape said, "Death Eaters are not nice, Potter. Their brutality knows no limits. Your sheltered life has never exposed you to the depravity of men and women who delight in the tortured agony of others."

Never taking his eyes off Snape's face as the Professor stood up and walked around the desk to come face to face with him, Harry remained quiet.

In deep deliberate tones, Snape said, "They take their magic and twist it into something that is ugly and inhumane -- as though the fact that they have the power to do something, makes it right to do it. They revel in their dominance over others."

Seeing the gleam in Snape's dark eyes, Harry wouldn't say it, but he was thinking it. Professor Snape used to be one of them and from what Harry could see and Snape's own description of Death Eaters, he'd fit right in.

Although he knew Snape would never admit it to him, Harry was convinced that Snape either knew or had a fairly good guess about who attacked Hermione. He put the Healers on the right track about what potions to treat her with long before he identified the ingredients. If he knew what she took that night, it was because he knew who gave it to her, even then. Harry wondered if Snape told Dumbledore of his suspicions.

Harry sighed and shook his head, looking at Snape with something approaching pity. "You're conveniently ignoring that I have actually met your 'Dark Lord' on more than one occasion…sir…but…more important…what matters now is finding a way to help Hermione." Seeing Snape's face freeze into an impassive mask, Harry bid the Potions Master goodbye. It seemed like he was wasting his time trying to get Snape to help and he had other plans for the day.

As he reached the door, Snape said, "I expect you to keep what I've told you here to yourself, Potter. Miss Granger doesn't need you or Mr. Weasley, for that matter, concocting some dangerously ridiculous antidote. Her health is…in a fragile state. The wrong 'cure' could kill her."

With a quick nod, Harry gave Snape one last glare and left in search of Ginny. He was glad to leave the dank dungeon behind. He was still too early to meet Ginny. She wasn't in the main hallway so he walked toward the infirmary, hoping to have a moment to speak with his friends.

Faced with Hermione's affliction, Ron and she set aside their habit of needling each other with petty arguments. Ron gave up his campaign to assert himself in their relationship. Other issues paled in comparison to her health. He became Hermione's mainstay.

While Harry coordinated the D.A. member's investigation of what happened, Ron was the link between Hermione and all the classes she missed. Other friends pitched in to help her keep up on her work, but Ron was the one to organize and orchestrate everything.

That's why Harry knew he would find Ron next to Hermione. Happily she was awake. As Harry strode into the infirmary, he greeted his friends cheerfully. "Hermione, I didn't expect to…."

"See me awake?" Hermione finished with a laugh. "Don't try to deny it. You all come down here to watch me sleep. It's become the cool thing to do. You should sell tickets."

Ron looked appalled. Sometime in this ordeal, he'd lost his sense of humor. At least, he didn't see anything funny about Hermione being ill.

Seeing Ron looking tragic, Hermione said, "Oh, Ron. It's all right…It's just…every time I wake up there's a different group of people around this bed…" The infirmary had, in fact, become something of an unofficial D.A. clubhouse, much to Madam Pomfrey's dismay. They came to check on Hermione, to deliver homework assignments and notes to Ron, and to report any rumors to Harry.

Ron looked at his feet and said, "I'm sorry, Hermione. I didn't think about it…I'll make sure you sleep…undisturbed from now on."

"As long as one of the people I wake up to is you, it'll be all right, Ron," Hermione said with a big smile. She tilted her head, trying to get him to look at her.

"Ginny and I are planning to go to Hogsmeade. Do you have any errands we could do for you? Ron, how about you?" Harry asked. Ron had refused to even discuss going to the village with them, insisting that he had too much homework to do. They all knew he didn't want to leave Hermione alone.

Ron said, "No thanks. I'm just going to do some reading."

Picking up the book Ron had open in front of him Hermione said, "Oh, Ron. You don't have to read _Rare and Repulsive Potions_ on my account. I'm sure Snape and Dumbledore have a fairly wide knowledge of the subject." Her eyes welled with tears as she looked at him.

Ron met her gaze steadily and said, "I have to do something."

After a moment of silence, Hermione said, "All right, then. Read it aloud. Maybe we'll find the cure for this sleeping sickness whi…." She fell asleep as she spoke, her body slumping sideways. Ron gently laid Hermione back on her pillow, her curly hair spreading across the white linen. Happily her bed was charmed so that she never slid all the way off the bed. Once she was situated, he gave he a swift kiss on the forehead.

Watching the two of them, Harry felt a tug at his heart. He wished there were something he could do to help them. Seemed like they were taking turns trying to keep each other's spirits up.

Harry was furious that someone had lashed out at his friend. He took it as an attack on the D.A. and all they were trying to do. After all Hermione had founded the group and the attack happened at one of their events. The club was really her idea. Although Harry was supposedly the "leader," she was, without a doubt, the organizer.

If they'd attacked her hoping to break the D.A. apart, their plan had backfired. The group had never been more cohesive or determined to train in defense. Any petty arguments or prejudices they may have had before were gone. Everyone was working together to solve the mystery of what happened to Hermione.

But the day was set aside for something other than finding a cure for Hermione or even discovering who attacked her. By now Ginny should be waiting by the main doors. Today was Harry's chance to go back to the cave undetected and search for the old storerooms in Myrddin's Den for a branch from the mythical tanglewood tree.

(((()))

The sun shone brightly on the remnants of snow as Ginny made her way back from the Care of Magical Creatures paddock with Colin Creevey. It hadn't snowed in a while, but it was still very cold. Hagrid had the fifth years studying unicorns. She really enjoyed working with the beautiful silvery creatures. One of them was carrying a foal and was quite skittish. Ginny had soothed her and fed her apples. Hagrid had told her that she was better at handling them than her brother Charlie. It made her feel peaceful just to be near the soon-to-be mother.

"Thanks for letting me take pictures, Ginny." Colin had been photographing instead of taking care of the animals. He couldn't get too close to them anyway.

"They're so beautiful, aren't they?" She had a dreamy look in her eye. The cold air made their breath show as they spoke.

"Yes, they are," answered Colin, privately thinking she was beautiful, too, with her cheeks red from the cold. He looked at her sadly, knowing she was headed into Hogsmeade with her boyfriend later.

"Cheer up, Colin. It's a gorgeous day!" Ginny said, flashing him a bright smile. She was excited to be heading off on an adventure with Harry — just the two of them. They hadn't told anyone that their trip to Hogsmeade was a cover for Harry's return to the cave in Wales. Hermione and Ron had enough to worry about.

From a distance, Harry watched her walking up the hill with Colin. Her Gryffindor scarf was pulled close to her face. She threw her head back and smiled brilliantly. Colin couldn't take his eyes off her. Harry briefly felt sorry for the younger boy. He knew what he was going through.

Spotting Harry waiting for her, Ginny waved. Now her smile was all for him and he knew it. He walked out to meet her. Colin and he nodded their greeting, but the younger boy kept walking and was soon out of sight.

He took Ginny's hand in both of his and leaned his forehead to hers. "It's so good to see you," he said, breathing deeply the familiar scent of her shampoo.

As always, she felt overwhelmed. While he was still slim, his workouts with Quidditch and fencing had improved his physique. But it was something else in his presence that made her pause, something he seemed unaware of. He just gave off a sense of barely controlled power. Smiling softly and looking into his face, she could see the shadow of worry that hadn't left since Hermione fell ill. But his eyes were crinkling slightly like he had a plan. "What are you up to, Harry?" she asked.

"I'll tell you while we walk," he answered, steering her toward the crowd of people headed toward Hogsmeade village with his arm around her waist. He waved his free hand in front of them. She felt a surge of warmth encircle her. "I don't want you to catch cold," he explained.

In the distance, they had a great view of the frozen lake. The water shone silver in the bright sun framed by groves of dark green trees. Harry said, "How about here? Let's stop awhile and enjoy the view." Some passing third years stared at the two of them, then looked away when Harry stared back.

"I wonder how the giant squid is? You'd think it would be too cold for him in winter." Ginny had a soft spot for the giant squid. In her opinion, he could be quite playful.

"Being magical, I think he'll survive the cold. Here, Gin, I want to give you something." He was holding out a piece of parchment with something small folded inside.

Ginny opened it quickly and was surprised to see a slightly bent butterbeer cap. Grinning, she held it in front of her. "Gee thanks, Harry. This is just what I've always dreamed you'd give me."

Laughing, Harry said, "It's a special Portkey to get through the wards. Hold it in your palm and say 'refuge' and it will activate." He brushed a strand of hair away from her eyes and ran his finger lightly down the side of her face, studying her freckles. A cool wind was blowing off the lake, but the two of them were still protected by Harry's warming charm.

"Where will the bottle cap take me?" she asked, her voice sounding low. Several more strands of hair escaped to frame her face as she looked up at Harry steadily.

"The Hogwarts infirmary." Harry blushed and took his hand away. They were in full view of students headed toward the village.

Ginny shook her head and said, "You're getting as bad as Moody. I'll be in the Three Broomsticks the whole time you're gone today. What could happen in Hogsmeade? Maybe you should take this."

"I just want you to be safe, Gin…please." Harry looked wild, almost dangerous, as he spoke. His smile disappeared as he thought of all the things that could happen — and had happened to Hermione. His earlier conversation about Death Eaters was wearing on him.

Of course Ginny didn't know about that, but seeing the look on his face, she readily agreed that she would Portkey back to Hogwarts at the first sign of trouble. Smiling at him, she said, "I'd like to visit Hermione later anyway."

The two of them walked the rest of the way into Hogsmeade. They ran errands, then went to the Three Broomsticks. They'd picked the busy pub precisely because it was a popular place; reasoning if Harry and Ginny disappeared together during a Hogsmeade visit, there would be talk. If Ginny were someplace she could be seen, her reputation would be safe.

After eating some lunch, Harry excused himself to go to the loo. Once he was sure he was all alone, Harry Apparated to Wales. He knew this was a reckless thing to do, but he rationalized that he'd done all he could do for Hermione and Ron. If he didn't take the chance to explore the cave during this Hogsmeade visit, he wouldn't have another chance until Valentine's Day. He needed to find the tanglewood branch so he could attempt to construct the torch. He didn't know what else to try.

Standing at the entrance to the cave, in front of the fountain with two birds, Harry looked around carefully. He didn't see any sign of footprints or broken branches, but things looked different somehow. Maybe it was just that there wasn't as much underbrush as the last time he'd been there, after all, it was still winter.

Harry called Ginny with his mirror. She answered, but she couldn't see him because he'd already cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself before he Apparated. She watched as a picture appeared in her mirror of a barren, wintry thicket in a forest. She heard Harry's voice say, "No problems getting here and no sign of anyone else."

"You didn't finish your butterbeer," she answered with a laugh.

Harry answered, teasingly, "People will think you've taken to drink." So far this was all according to plan. They'd decided that they should keep the mirrors open while Harry explored. Ginny planned to hide her mirror under a book so she would be able to know if there was a problem. They'd both agreed to talk only when necessary. Harry charmed his mirror to stick to the front of his robes so Ginny would be able to see whatever Harry was seeing.

It felt weird to walk inside the cave by himself, but Harry strode purposefully through the main cavern toward the white torch. The mysterious archway appeared and he found himself in the inner room with the harp and flute on the table. Everything appeared to be just the same, except that he was alone. There was no sign of the red haired ghost.

"Niniane?" he called, realizing just how much he had counted on her being there to guide him. Wondering what to do next, he ran a finger along the harp, making it sing out a sweet, eerie chord.

"Oh…I hear you calling, but I don't see you. Who's here?"

He took off the Disillusionment Charm, but he was still alone. "Niniane?" he called again.

"You!" a voice screamed.

Harry startled at the cry. Turning around, he saw the ghost of Niniane. She was stretched out on the raised platform that he could only assume was some sort of bed. "Aren't you going to join me?" she asked, luxuriating in the rugs and skins although Harry knew she couldn't feel it.

"I didn't come here to curl up with you." Harry knew he sounded a bit impatient, but he wasn't sure that he wanted to deal with this crazy spirit. If she couldn't keep anything straight, what kind of help could she be?

"Why did you come back, then?" She asked, floating to an upright position. She didn't seem angry, just curious, but she floated too close to his face for comfort.

Harry looked around the room, hoping to find some other assistance besides this weird ghost. Sighing, he said, "I'm looking for the storerooms or workrooms — do you know how I could find them. Where's the best place to brew a potion?"

"I never go to the storerooms myself. Of course I know where they are. Merlin made all of his apprentices brew potions. It's just that since I died, there doesn't seem much point." She looked at him sweetly, almost wistfully, and said, "Wouldn't you rather stay right here? You've always liked this room."

Harry shook his head and said, "I'm Harry — remember?"

She flashed him something of a glare and said, "Of course I remember." Relaxing her stance, she said, "Follow me." Then she drifted through the wall.

Trying to do as she asked and follow her, Harry collided with the wall. It felt completely solid to him. He'd hoped it would be enchanted like the wall in Platform 9 3/4.

After a few moments, Niniane returned and said, "Bring the torch…" before disappearing again.

Smiling at himself, he picked up the torch and walked toward the expanse of solid wall. This time, he went right through, torch and all. On the other side was a large empty room that seemed to drop off on the far side. On closer inspection the area that dropped away was actually a roughhewn staircase, carved into the side of the cave's stone wall, leading down into a dark pit. It was terribly quiet. Harry thought he could hear his own heart beating.

Summoning his courage, Harry held the torch high and began to descend the stairs. He lost sight of his ghostly guide. Niniane floated so swiftly that she soon was too far ahead for him to follow. A single torch lit the passageway at the bottom of the stairs. Three archways led off the narrow hall. It was eerily reminiscent of the room full of doors in the Department of Mysteries, only this room didn't spin.

Ignoring the goosebumps on his arms, Harry entered the first room on the left. Torches lit automatically, just as they did in the cavernous rooms upstairs, but the air in the small room was still. There was a charred open pit and some cauldrons plus two wide heavy stone surfaces that would be perfect for a workspace. Two canisters sat on the counter with their lids leaning against them. They were completely empty. It seemed like the room was waiting patiently for someone's return -- maybe because the room was so clean. He quietly said, "_Accio Tanglewood!_" Nothing happened.

He listened to his mirror for a moment. Since he didn't hear any conversations in the pub, he called, "Ginny?" When she answered, he continued. "I'm in some kind of workroom. There's furniture and utensils, but no supplies of any kind. It's kind of creepy here."

"At least you found some more rooms. Any sign of people?" she asked quietly, looking down into her lap so the other pub patrons wouldn't notice her talking to herself.

"Just Niniane. This place looks as if someone just left, but it's probably hasn't been touched in centuries. The cauldrons are set out to be used, but there's nothing to cook or make, no food or potions ingredients or anything." Harry could hear some muffled talking.

"Ginny Weasley…who brings a book into a pub. And what's the paper for? You're not actually doing homework, are you?" Harry didn't recognize the voice asking Ginny all the questions.

"Susan Bones…why don't you and Sophie join me? This isn't homework. I'm just working on my sketches," Ginny said.

Silently thanking Ginny for making things clear, Harry listened quietly. He didn't want to make any noise. He could hear chairs scraping and glass tinkling as the girls sat down. What followed was a brief conversation about the finished drawings in Ginny's sketchbook.

Then Sophie Moon lowered her voice and said, "I've been meaning to thank you for that special hair gel, Ginny. Phase one was a complete success." She giggled softly.

"You're doing the Weasleys a favor. Fred and George were looking for a test subject. I think they're going to call it Repel Gel. My only worry was that we'd never know whether it was the gel or Malfoy's personality putting people off. How did you ever get it into his kit?"

In her quiet lilting voice, Sophie explained. "I waited until he was 'busy' with my roommate. He and Pansy Parkinson can be really disgusting sometimes. With Draco out of the way it was easy to just slip into his dorm room. I'm pretty good at that Disillusionment Charm that Harry taught us. I can hold it in place for two or three minutes. Then I just vanished his regular hair gel and filled the bottle with yours."

Susan said, "Now even Crabbe and Goyle can't stand to sit near him for very long. They've started spending most of their time with Millicent Bulstrode."

"Just look at them. Do you suppose it's a love triangle?" Sophie added, making all three girls laugh.

With that comment Harry decided to tune out the girl talk and focus on exploring. The next room was clearly a potions lab. The "_Accio Tanglewood!_" spell still yielded nothing. What made Harry think it was a potions lab was the row of small ceramic jars and canisters that lined one wall. Thick and undecorated, the pots reminded him of the Potions classroom at Hogwarts with its rows of glass jars. Again the jars and canisters seemed remarkably empty. Absolutely nothing was made out of wood so Harry moved on.

In his mirror Harry heard Ginny say hello to Luna and Neville. Madam Rosmerta came to the table to ask if anyone needed anything. When she'd gone, Luna began to tell a long-winded story about Cornelius Fudge and his new plan to take over Gringotts using magically enhanced Puffskeins. Harry tuned them out.

The last room was a storeroom. Since there were no torches on the walls here, the room was dark. Lifting the white torch, Harry could see several small, open stone boxes on the floor near the door. Their lids were scattered and broken. More containers, also in disrepair, lined the far side of the room. But in the center of the room was a large stone box similar to the one he'd found at the end of last summer in the main cave upstairs. It was just like the stone box where he'd found his sword.

Excited, Harry wondered if there was any way to tell Ginny. He decided against calling out to her since he could still hear Luna telling her Puffskeins story. At last count, there were at least five people sitting with her.

He walked around the box to inspect it closely. Unfortunately the box didn't simply open for him as the one upstairs had. He tried to lift the lid using brute strength and it would not budge. 'Am I a wizard?' he asked himself and tried again, this time using his magical power to lift the stone. "_Wingardium Leviosa!"_ It was practically the first spell he'd ever learned. The heavy stone lid lifted into the air. Harry floated it to the floor next to the large stone box. It was dark and deep. He had to lean over the side to see inside properly.

"Is that what you've been looking for?" asked Niniane, appearing again out of nowhere.

Harry jumped in surprise before answering. "I'm not even sure what's in here. I'm just trying to take a look." He floated the white torch over head. Niniane moved to stand shoulder to shoulder with Harry and they both peered inside the large stone sarcophagus shaped box.

"Cool! I never saw anything like this before," cried a boy's voice that sounded very familiar.

Confused and slightly worried, Harry looked around the room. Only he and the ghost appeared to be there. And so far the box appeared to be completely empty. A moment later, he relaxed as Ginny said, "De…ean! That's my enchanted mood glass. And as you can see, my mood is gray and dark today. You better not mess with me. Give it back!"

"Sorry…Of course, here. Take it. I just thought it was weird that your mirror doesn't reflect my face." Dean sounded highly apologetic.

'No one wants to confront an angry Ginny Weasley,' thought Harry as he clapped his hand over the mirror. He'd forgotten that the mirror was stuck to the front of his robes so that Ginny would be able to see what he was seeing. He put his fingers across his lips, as if to say, "Shhh…" to Niniane.

The ghost just stared at him unblinkingly.

"Thanks for saving us seats, Ginny. It's really crowded in here today," said Parvati Patil. "Hope we didn't keep you waiting, Dean." Her voice sounded totally different when she spoke to Dean.

From the sound of it, Dean, Parvati, Lavender and Seamus were joining Ginny's already crowded table. Seamus started asking her questions about Hermione and Ron. In his Irish accent, he said, "It's not the same since Hermione's been…ill. Your brother's so worried, he doesn't tell jokes anymore."

Then Harry heard Ginny ask Dean to order her another butterbeer and excuse herself from the table. Once inside the loo, she checked to make sure she was alone and pulled the mirror to her nose. "Are you all right?" she asked.

Harry twisted his robe up so he could look into the mirror himself. As his face appeared in her mirror, Ginny gasped. "I thought you weren't going to show yourself while you explored," she said reprovingly. He'd be safer if he was invisible.

"It's the only way that I could convince my guide to appear. When she could hear me, but not see me, she was a bit uncooperative." Harry laughed. "So you're hiding in the loo?"

"Pretty much, yes. I'm hiding in the loo…I don't see why you find that amusing, Harry." She thought she heard a muffled "sorry" so she continued. "Have you found anything? Why's it so dark?"

Harry dropped his robe so the mirror would face what he faced once again. Harry held the white torch high so Ginny could see into the darkness. "Here… see for yourself. We're in one of the storerooms or maybe it was some sort of workroom. I don't think anyone's been here in hundreds of years. I found a box like the one the sword was stored in, but it seems empty. All the containers and things are empty. They're perfectly clean — not even a speck of dust on anything. Isn't that a little strange?"

"Have you tried a Revealing Charm?" Ginny asked.

Feeling silly, Harry ran the "_Appareo" _Charm over the interior of the stone container. Nothing appeared. "_Accio Tanglewood!_" was no use either.

"Whatever this used to hold, it's empty now." Harry had heard what Seamus said about Ron not telling any jokes lately. He couldn't help but feel foolish, searching these empty rooms when his two best friends had bigger problems to solve. Speaking to Ginny he said, "What difference would it make if I found a piece of tanglewood? There's no guarantee that it'd ever be of any use. I mean, maybe I should be spending our time on finding a cure for Hermione instead of wasting time wandering around this old cave."

Before Ginny could say, "Nonsense…" the ghost of Niniane let out one of her pathetic wails. Ginny was thankful she was in the loo until Parvati walked in and gave her a sympathetic look. She put the mirror in her rucksack and cast a quick Silencing Charm on it.

On instinct, Harry put his hand out to pat Niniane's arm. Because she was a ghost, his hand slipped right through. The cold from touching her made him shiver. Harry asked, "What's wrong?"

Between ghostly sobs, she choked out a rambling speech about how much she'd missed him. He heard her out without interrupting. Clearly, she was thinking of someone other than Harry, probably Owain.

When her sobs seemed to be a little quieter, Harry said, "I'll visit again soon. I…I just need to find something."

"To cure your friend? Why not just take her some of the spring water?" She made it sound like the most practical solution in the world.

It got his attention. Harry asked, "What spring water?"

She looked at him in that sad, strange way and said, "The fountain with the two birds…it guards the entrance to the cave…the water from the spring there should cure anything. Take her some."

Harry knew what she meant. He'd passed the stone statue set into the hillside a couple of times now. It had two birds and a basin full of debris so he was a little frustrated by her suggestion. "I'm not who you think I am…I've only seen that fountain a couple of times, but it has no water that I can see."

"But you can call upon the water to flow with a song," she said, leaning toward him admiringly.

Shaking his head at her, Harry wondered if she would ever keep it straight. She must be thinking Owain had returned to keep her company. Or she must want that to happen so much that she couldn't understand the truth. He'd met other ghosts who were lost in their own agonizing fantasy, the Bloody Baron sprang to mind, but she was the saddest ghost he'd ever met.

"Harry are you there?" Ginny asked.

Her voice surprised him out of his reverie. "I'm here. Have you been somewhere else?"

Ginny giggled and said, "Parvati walked into the loo just as your ghost friend let out that howl. She thought I'd made that noise so I hid the mirror in my rucksack and put a silencing charm on it. I couldn't convince her that I hadn't been crying…Don't be surprised if Parvati gives you a piece of her mind later for leaving me alone in a pub. Did I miss anything?"

Looking nervously at Niniane who had composed herself at last, Harry said, "Er…I'll tell you later. I haven't found what I came for…but, maybe I found something better." He wanted to choose his words carefully so he wouldn't upset the ghost again. "I…that is, Niniane has told me something interesting. The fountain outside the cave used to have a spring…the water flowing in it that was supposed to cure anything. Maybe it would help Hermione. What do you think?"

"What could it hurt, Harry?" Ginny sounded sad, as though she had no faith in their ability to find a cure for Hermione. Harry could hear, but not see her because his mirror was still attached to the front of his robes.

Niniane moved close enough to the mirror to see Ginny talking.

"Hello." Ginny said as her little mirror filled with the face of the ghostly auburn haired beauty. Niniane didn't answer so Ginny asked, "Can you still hear me Harry?"

"Yes…I'm going to take a closer look at that fountain. It's back at the entrance of the cave, behind some bushes."

"What does it look like?" Ginny asked.

Harry had to think about it for a moment. "I don't know…it's just a fountain that's sort of set into the side of the hill. Keep the mirror handy and I'll show you."

As Harry moved toward into the outer room and toward the stairs, Niniane followed silently. "I saw myself in your device. What is that?"

"This?" Harry asked, smiling. "It's a mirror. You've never seen a mirror before?"

She shook her head. "Not one that shows my face so clearly."   
  
Harry hesitated. He didn't know how to explain that she'd seen Ginny's face, not her own. "A real mirror just reflects the light…like a lake that is very still…But this is a charmed mirror…that was Ginny you saw. You're both beautiful redheads, but otherwise there's not much resemblance."

"I want to keep you all to myself," Niniane said, her lip quivering. "The old man can't keep us apart any longer. Now that you're here, we can be together all the time."

Harry asked, "By 'the old man', do you mean Myrddin? Who tried to keep us apart?" He knew he was risking another meltdown on her part, but he was curious about Owain's story.

Turning to him with a breathtakingly beautiful smile, she said, "Myrddin began to follow me everywhere. He found out that I'd been…trying…to gain as much power as I could. But I was doing it for us…so we'd be untouchable. That's why he did it. He sent you away…all those…errands. That's what he called them. He was going to keep us apart forever. I had to do something. Do you forgive me now?" She looked so hopeful.

"Yes…I forgive you. Doesn't seem like we had a happy ending though. What happened in the end?"

Suddenly bursting into an angry, unintelligible tirade, she wailed and carried on about it. She may not be a reliable source of information, but she was never dull. She ended by turning on him and screaming. He did understand her last sentence. "Now you show up here with this other woman, this Ginny. You've betrayed me…after everything..." She threw herself down on the floor of the cave and buried her face in her arms.

"I didn't betray you. I'm not Owain…remember…I'm Harry." He tried to use an even tone to calm her down, but reliving her tragic past was apparently too much for her. Perhaps ghosts don't handle their emotions the same way that live people do. She seemed beyond speech so Harry slipped away, retracing his steps. A few minutes later he walked out of the cave into the sunshine.

While Ginny tried to follow the story that Niniane was telling, she didn't get to hear it all. As the ghost became more vocal, she was forced to slip her mirror back into her silenced rucksack or risk everyone at the Three Broomsticks thinking she was insane. She'd already stayed in the loo a little longer than anyone would think was normal.

When she stepped out into the pub, she realized that all of the students were gone. It was still early in the afternoon so that was odd. Ignoring the stares of the other patrons, she went back to her table, pulled out her Charms book and lifted her warm butterbeer to her lips.

The door to the pub opened, briefly flooding the cozy dark interior with bright sunlight. Ginny focused on reading her book instead of looking up so she didn't see the figures of Dumbledore and McGonagall until they were next to her table. She reached down to open her rucksack so Harry could hear what they were saying, but a strange sound, almost like music, came from the bag so she closed it up tight.

Professor McGonagall spoke first, eyeing Ginny through the little square glasses perched on the end of her nose. "Ah, Miss Weasley. Are you so dedicated to your studies that you must read during a Hogsmeade visit? That must be an interesting book for you to miss all the excitement of the afternoon." McGonagall pressed her lips together and raised an eyebrow.

Staring up at the two professors, Ginny asked, "Excitement?" Her eyes were wide and innocent. She really didn't have any idea what they were talking about.

Blue eyes sparkling with charm, the Headmaster explained. "The students have been asked to return to the school. The Hogsmeade visit has been canceled because we received word of a plan to release Dementors in the village. It's just a precaution. None of the creatures have been sighted." He appeared to be totally calm as though he was simply discussing the weather.

"I…I'm ready to go, sir." She fumbled around with her papers and her rucksack, putting all her things in the outer pouch. She needed to contact Harry -- to warn him not to return to Hogsmeade. "But…I…uh…."

"You need to perhaps contact Mr. Potter? At least, you can tell us where he is," Professor McGonagall said. Both professors seemed to be aware that something was up.

"I don't know…" Ginny studied her bag, trying to think of something to divert their attention. It didn't seem right to make up some lie about Harry's location when they were only concerned with his welfare. She was really coming up empty, so she tried stalling, "I…I came into town with Harry, but…."

Professor Dumbledore said graciously, "Perhaps…we could prevail upon you to use your mirror to call Mr. Potter."

Under his amused and curious gaze, Ginny opened the top of her bag and breathed a sigh of relief that the music, or whatever it was, had stopped. She pulled out the mirror. "Harry," she said as if she were just calling him now. When he answered she spoke quickly before he could say anything. "I'm here with the Headmaster and Professor McGonagall. We're all wondering where you've wandered off." She smiled weakly at the two of them. McGonagall maintained her icy expression, but Dumbledore seemed terribly amused by something.

Deciding it was best to turn her back to them, she said more quietly, "Well?"

Louder than necessary, Harry said, "I'm just up the street in front of Honeydukes."

Breathing a sigh of relief in spite of herself, Ginny handed the mirror to Professor Dumbledore and said, "He's in front of Honeydukes."

Still looking amused, Dumbledore said, "Thank you for your assistance, Miss Weasley." Into the mirror he asked, "So if you're all finished with your candy purchases, we would like all the students to return to Hogwarts immediately. We have reason to think there may be a problem with Dementors in Hogsmeade today."

"What kind of problem? Where did you hear about it?" Harry asked. "Aren't the Dementors controlled by Voldemort?"

"I hardly think we should discuss that here," Professor McGonagall interrupted with a snort.

Without changing his benign, almost cheerful demeanor, Professor Dumbledore spoke quietly with Harry for a moment. Soon they all walked safely past the pillars with the winged boars and the gates of Hogwarts were swinging closed behind them. Since they were none the worse for the supposed Dementor attack, Harry couldn't help but wonder what else was on Dumbledore's mind. He seemed intent on securing the castle. Harry was left to wonder as the Headmaster and Professor McGonagall bid them goodbye in the entry hall.

"Interesting choice, Dementors," said Harry when he and Ginny were finally alone. "It would only take a few Aurors to repel them. I know they're awful, even repulsive…but why make an attack that could so easily be beaten."

Feeling something cold blowing in his ear, Harry rubbed his neck with both hands. Peeves floated in front of him, cackling. Then he winked at Ginny and shot away with an insane giggle.

"That sounds like a question for Ron." Ginny laughed softly. "I'm just glad the professors seemed to believe you. That's twice you've used Honeydukes for your cover story. Maybe you need to come up with a new one, Harry."

He grinned back at her, slipping his hand into hers. "I've had a terribly lucky day…First at the cave, then in Hogsmeade. Maybe you bring me luck, Ginny." She'd been a really good sport going along with his plan to go back to the cave instead of focusing on Ron and Hermione's problems, as he maybe should have done. He lifted up a big bag of candy and said, "I did get a passel of chocolate frogs to try to cheer up your brother."

"Would have come in handy if there'd really been Dementors, too." Ginny took an unsuccessful swipe at the bag. "Let me see what else you bought," she said as Harry held the bag out of reach.

"You'll just have to be patient," he said, knowing that by implying that he'd bought her something, he was inviting a full scale invasion of his trunk and other personal possessions. He knew her well enough to know she couldn't resist a challenge or a present. 'Well, let her look. I'll just have to find an untraceable hiding place.'

For a moment, Ginny considered Harry's facial expression and body language. He had a self-satisfied grin and he was holding his rucksack as though it contained gold. The Honeydukes bag was probably just a ruse because he was still dangling it just close enough to tease her. Feigning disinterest, Ginny turned away from him and said, "You didn't have time to buy anything all that good. You only had about five minutes alone in Hogsmeade today…and you spent it buying Ron some chocolate frogs…which was really sweet of you, Harry." She looked at him sideways and smiled.

When she stopped trying to take the Honeydukes bag away from him, Harry was confused. Thinking he'd never figure Ginny out completely, he said, "Let's go give these to Ron. I'd like to check on Hermione anyway."

The late afternoon sun slanted across the neat white beds in the infirmary. They could hear Ron's voice talking quietly behind the screened in area of Hermione's bed. Coming around the screens quietly, Ginny and Harry saw Ron sitting in a chair near her pillow. Ron was talking quietly to a sleeping Hermione.

Ginny walked straight to her brother and put her arm around his shoulder. "Anything happen while we were gone?" she asked.

Looking at his sister sadly, he shook his head. "No…she slept the whole time."

"You look like you could use a rest, too," Ginny said. Ron didn't budge. He just looked at Hermione without smiling.

"Or at least a shower and shave," Harry said, waving his hand in front of his face as though Ron smelled bad.

Sounding an awful lot like her mother, Ginny said. "Harry's right. We'll stay with her. You go take a break and…maybe have an early dinner. Then come back."

Figuring he knew what Ron was worried about, Harry pulled his old D.A. coin out of his pocket and held it up. "Do you still have yours? If the date changes, that means Hermione woke up and you should hurry back here."

Ron shook his head again. "I don't know where my D.A. coin is…we haven't used those since last year."

"Here…take mine," said Ginny, fishing around in her rucksack for her coin. When she finally found it, she picked off the lint and handed it to her brother with an encouraging smile.

Ron almost smiled back, but he settled for nodding before he stood up to leave. "Make sure you let me know the moment she wakes up…and tell her to drink the potion in the blue bottle…all of it. Check to be sure she finishes it…Snape said she has to have every drop."

Ginny picked up the unlabeled blue bottle and examined it. Harry nodded and threw the Honeydukes bag to Ron. "Oh…I almost forgot. Here's your chocolate frog fix."

Ron opened the bag and laughed. "Thanks, Harry. I haven't had this many frogs since Fred and George sent some last year." Smiling at his sister and friend, he said, "One of these is bound to have an Agrippa card."

It seemed to Harry that Ron had said that for his sake. He didn't really care about saving Chocolate Frog cards any more. He just wanted Hermione to be well again, but he knew Harry was just trying to cheer him up.

Watching as Ron left the room, Harry said, "I wish there was something I could really do for them. If it were one of us…we'd have Hermione to help figure something out. She'd probably find some obscure super pepper up potion in some old book no one ever thought of reading. I don't know…but I know she…she wouldn't just sit around and hope someone else came up with something." He hated the thought of relying on Snape to come up with a cure. Snape never had a nice word to say to Hermione. How could he be her best chance?

Ginny listened without interrupting. They stood on either side of Hermione's bed so she had to reach across to take his hand. "You always give it everything you have, too. Even when you're busy with a mystery of your own."

"That's just it. She's done so much for me." He looked at her sorrowfully. "I wish I could help her."

Tilting her head and looking carefully at Harry before speaking, Ginny asked, "What happened to finding a cure in the fountain by the cave?"

Harry's jaw clenched at the memory. It was frustrating enough that the lower rooms of the cave were empty, but the fountain was worse. "When Niniane said that the water from the fountain could cure anything, I was sure we were on to something great. I did go look at it and…I tried to make it work. To make the water flow…."

"Can you describe the fountain for me?" Ginny interrupted. "I didn't get to see it. I had to put the mirror away because it started making some strange noises." She was almost afraid to ask what the noises were.

"It's made out of a gray stone and the big round part below is full of leaves." Harry wasn't sure how to describe it. He wasn't sure what she wanted to know.

Ginny prompted him. "How big? What color? Plain or decorated?"

Making strokes of gold light to draw in the air, he tried to draw what the fountain looked like. His drawing basically looked like a large lopsided rectangle with rounded edges. Ginny looked at him skeptically like she wasn't sure what to say. She bit her lower lip.

"It sort of has two birds at the top that look like they've been frozen in flight." The two blobs he drew at the top could be some kind bird, but if he hadn't said what they were, no one would ever have known. He kept trying to draw as he explained. "They sort of stick out over the bowl area down below, but it's all made of the same grayish stone, the birds and the basin are all one piece."

Harry looked at his finished air drawing, and burst out laughing. "Except the size, it doesn't look anything like this." The drawing disappeared.

Since he was laughing, Ginny didn't have to hold her laugh in any longer. When they finished, she said, "Did you try singing like a bird to get the water to turn on?" She had a big grin on her face because she was pretty sure she'd heard him try singing.

"It's not like there was a tap. And I sing about as well as I draw." Harry's face became serious. "I did try singing…I even charmed the statues to sing birdsongs."

Adopting what she hoped was a sympathetic face, Ginny asked, "And it didn't work?" She was wondering if the strange sounds she'd heard coming from her rucksack was Harry singing or the birdsong charm he cast.

"Oh…the charm worked. They sang…a really snappy tune, but no water appeared. I was trying to think of something else, then you called and said Dumbledore was there so I Apparated to Honeydukes."

She patted his arm reassuringly. "Maybe you just need to figure out the right singing charm."

"That's just it, Ginny. Where am I going to find the right charm? I can't figure out anything. We need Hermione for research. And what about this…" He pulled the black phoenix statue out of his pocket, tossing it in the air a few times like he was catching the snitch. "I've been trying to figure this one out for months. Wish this was something useful."

Ginny caught the statue right out from under his nose and examined it. "How do you know that it isn't useful?" she asked, handing it back to him.

"I've been carrying this around, asking everyone — even Professor Dumbledore — what they think it is. No one seems to know." He put the statue on the bed between them.

"Have you tried putting spells on it?" Ginny asked.

Giving Ginny an inscrutable look, he said, "I'm ashamed to say that I haven't. What's wrong with me? It's like I sometimes forget that I'm a wizard…_Appareo!_" Blue light for the Revealing Charm shot from the end of Harry's hand toward the stone. Instead of deflecting the spell, the statue seemed to absorb the blue light.

"Try something like transfiguring it to fly. After all — it's a phoenix." Ginny seemed happy to be experimenting on the little statue.

As before, the stone seemed to absorb the light from Harry's spell. They tried several others with the same results.

"I guess we need a new approach. What do we know about the stone?" Ginny asked. It wasn't in her nature to just give up.

Harry shrugged and said, "It's pure obsidian. I don't know anything about rocks. Do you?"

"Obsidian sounds more like a person from the country of Obsidia than a rock. Are you sure that's what it's called?" Kneeling on the floor and leaning on the bed so she was eye level with the statue, Ginny held her head up with her hand as she studied the stone closely.

Harry thought she looked cute concentrating so hard. Grinning at her despite his frustration that they weren't getting anywhere with the stone statue, Harry said, "That's what Hermione told me." Glancing up at his sleeping friend, he felt a little guilty. Here he was having fun with Ginny while Hermione couldn't stay awake. "She also said that Obsidian is made when a volcano meets the sea…a sort of glass. But I don't know what difference that would make…neither did she."

Ginny picked the statue up and held it to the light to see if she could see through it. It did seem translucent on the thinner parts of the carving. "Do you think that's why it absorbs light, Harry? Because it's made out of volcanic glass?" she asked.

"Don't know," said Harry with a shrug.

"What did Dumbledore say?" Ginny asked, setting the statue down, but still looking closely at it.

Harry sighed and tried to remember Dumbledore's exact words. "Like Luna, he thought it might hold some sort of phoenix spirit. But he said that he didn't know what it was…oh, and that a phoenix is a firebird. I guess that's why they're always red and gold." Harry smirked and said, "Maybe we should try setting it on fire…"

Ginny surprised him by saying, "Sure…why not…it can't hurt anything."

Shaking his head at her, he said, "You can tell you're related to Fred and George sometimes. We can't just set fire to something here."

"I didn't mean on Hermione's bed. Wait here." She went to the storeroom and came back with a small cauldron. Then she put the little phoenix statue in the middle of it and said seriously, "Go ahead, then."

Harry looked at her admiringly, then cast the spell for fire. "_Incendio!_" A flash of fire obscured their view, but when the flames died down, the stone remained as black as always. Sighing, Harry said, "I really thought we were on to something. I thought maybe it's black because it had been set on fire so many times."

"Try this…_Erubescere!_" Ginny said. Nothing happened. As before, the stone absorbed the light from her wand. She shook her head.

"What was that?" Harry asked.

"Robbie Johnson used that spell to turn his plant red in Herbology. I thought since a phoenix is supposed to be red that maybe…."

She made a lot of sense to him. "_Erubescere!_" he said softly. The light from the spell reached out from his hand and struck the black stone. As they watched, the stone began to shine as though lit from within, transforming from deep black to a brilliant crimson.

Ginny gave a shout. "You did it, Harry. Now it's red anyway." She smiled and looked up to see if he was as excited as she was — at least this was some progress. Looking into his face she saw Harry's eyes open wide as they filled with a flash of tiny flames.

Harry didn't make a sound. The flames she saw in his eyes disappeared, but she could feel something behind her softly moving her hair. In a flash of fire, a phoenix had appeared. It hovered just behind Ginny, its wings beating the air gently.

To Be Continued…

A/N: Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

Lourdes: Thanks for your review! Your words went a long way to alleviate my update guilt. I appreciate your patience and your kind words.

Orion The Hunter: Thanks for writing a review!

C. Rose: I appreciate the feedback. Thanks for taking the time to read and review!

Gryphonmistress: Part of the torch mystery is solved. Rhys' part in things should be cleared up soon. Hermione's not out of trouble yet. Snape is a character that I love to hate in J.K.R.'s books. If Alan Rickman didn't play him in the movie, I'm not sure I'd have any sympathy for him at all. Thanks for writing a review!

athenakitty: Draco's repel gel was just phase one. I don't know of a Muggle substitute for tanglewood. Do you mean it's a real tree? I thought it was just a music festival. Thanks for reviewing!

Sword of Darkness: I want to torture him first! Thanks for writing a review!

Nightwing509: Thanks for your kind remarks! Updates should be speedier now that I am back to working with my laptop.

Jlatmil1: Thanks for reviewing! I have done some research, but I'm no expert. Seems to me the real story of Myrddin/ Merlin has changed several times through the centuries…so why not change it to fit my story better? Carmarthen is supposed to have been the birthplace of Myrddin (pronounced merthen). The town is named after him. Hart Fell is a real place in Scotland marked by a Muggle plaque. The real Myrddin was supposed to have gone wild after a battle and lived in the woods there. Sometimes he changed into a stag, hence the name Hart which means stag. Owain is the name of a Welsh hero. Niniane was supposed to have trapped Merlin in a cave after bewitching him into teaching her all he knew.

bluemoon52292: I appreciate all your nice comments. Thanks for writing a review!

katepotter13: Thanks for reviewing! I'll try!

Craaminator: I got the "Breath of Nundu" idea from _Fantastic Beasts_ so it's almost canon. Thanks for writing a review!

rosepetal13: Thanks for reviewing! I'm still thinking about that ferret idea.

ginnyNharryseceretlove: Thanks for writing! I'll try!

Ghost Magic: Sorry about the delays. I'll try to write faster. Thanks for reviewing!

LunaLovegood61: Hermione's not all right, but they are all working on it. Thanks for writing a review!

Allan: Thanks for your review! I appreciate your feedback.

maniclotr: Thanks for the nice comments in your review! I appreciate it.

gopha-gurl: Thanks for reviewing! I'll try.

SilverWarrior: You've been paying attention! Thanks for reviewing!

Raiining: Thanks for "author alerting" my story. I appreciate the kind comments in your review!

Iluvatar: Thanks for writing a review!

Rusty Shackleford: Thanks for reviewing! To answer your question — it looks that way.

JD22: Sorry about the delay. You'll have to wait for the next chapter to find out what happened to Hermione. Thanks for writing a review!

Jeni Black: Thanks for all of your reviews! I appreciate all of your feedback -- especially your speculations about Rhys. Thanks for writing!

Snuffles007: Thanks for reviewing! Updates should come faster now. Thanks for your patience.

corwin: Eavesdropping isn't the best way to get the story straight, but Harry will find out more later. Thanks for writing a review!

Bongie: Thanks for writing! I'll try.

Mrs. Sakura Potter: Thanks! Just one more King Arthur comment — did they have to kill off Ioan Gryffydd? Thanks for reviewing!

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Jack-A-Roe: You guessed correctly. I do want to hex Snape! Thanks for writing a review!

Marauder4eva: Thanks for your kind compliments. I'm glad you've enjoyed the story so far. I can't wait for the real book six! Thanks for writing a review!

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Froggy1: Thanks for reviewing! And thank your friend for recommending my story, too! I appreciate it. You're right. There are plenty of wrenches in the works.

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Lady of the Dragons2: Thanks. What a nice thing to say! I'll try. Thanks for reviewing!

VilleValo: Dumbledore does look an awful lot like Merlin, doesn't he? Thanks for writing a review!

words-are-mine: They're my favorite ships, too. Thanks for reviewing!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	25. The Trouble with Phoenixes

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks for taking the time to read and review!

****

Chapter 25

The Trouble with Phoenixes

Like a fiery mirage, the phoenix fluttered peacefully in the air. The late afternoon sun slanting through the windows lit the bird's gold and red feathers like the sky at dawn. Ginny and Harry were stunned speechless by the appearance of the amazing creature in the Hogwarts infirmary. For a few moments the phoenix continued to hover, wings beating gently, then she landed softly on Harry's shoulder and began to croon.

After the long, stressful day, the music stirred their hearts and filled them with a sense of well being. When the song stopped, Harry asked, "Where did you come from?" He reached out slowly and smoothed the bird's beautiful feathers. She closed her eyes and sang one long note of approval.

When Harry stopped, the phoenix leapt to a perch on the end of Hermione's bed. Now that she was facing Harry, the bird began to gaze steadily into his bright green eyes. Smiling, Harry could feel something gently looking into his mind, through his deepest thoughts to the very heart of him. His instincts told him that she meant him no harm so he dropped all his Occlumency shields and held perfectly still. When the bird finished her task, she sang again.

Ginny picked up the little stone statue of a phoenix and handed it to Harry who slipped it into the pocket of his robes. The light within had gone out. The statue was black again. Speaking hesitantly, Ginny asked, "Now we know what your statue doesdo you thinkwould it be all right if I touched your phoenix?"

"She's not mine. I don't think you can own a phoenixbut she's beautiful, isn't she? Do you think she has more gold feathers than Fawkes?" He smoothed the feathers on her head, smiling softly.

Giggling as she cautiously reached out to touch the bird, Ginny said, "I do think she's beautiful, and she has plenty of gold feathers, but I don't agree with you. Like it or not, you have a phoenix. She trusts you, Harry."

"Of courseI trust her, tooI just meanta creature like this makes her own choices. She's probably been around forever." He gave the bird such a look of appreciation that Ginny would have been a little jealous if the phoenix had been a girl.

"Wellshe's been around since ancient Egypt anyway. Phoenixes first appeared with the pyramids," Ginny said, continuing to stroke the bird's soft feathers. Even the gold ones were as soft as goose down.

Harry seemed lost in thought as he examined the phoenix closely. "I don't see her in the desert. She belongs somewhere greenlike a lush foresthigh on a mountain where there's plenty of blue sky." The dreamy expression on his face was starting to bother Ginny a little.

Their attention was drawn to Hermione for a moment as she stirred in her sleep. The phoenix fluttered to Harry's shoulder and looked at his sleeping friend. She felt warm and soft, leaning against Harry's cheek.

Turning to Ginny, Harry said, "I haven't had a chance to thank you for covering for me todayand thanks for figuring out the phoenix statue." Harry was looking at her appreciatively now.

Ignoring the bird on his shoulder, Ginny stepped into the circle of his arms. She put her hands on his chest and kissed him lightly. "Anytime" She stopped short, realizing from his expression that Harry had more to say.

He cleared his throat first. "Imaybe I shouldit couldn't hurt. Would you stay here and monitor another short trip with your mirror? I can't sing, but the phoenix can."

"Oh, no" Ginny shook her head. "You've already been in enough danger today. Besides Dumbledore sealed the castle as we came through. The gates and the front door are warded closed. You won't be able to get out."

Looking at the phoenix on his shoulder, Harry said, "I won't be able to get out by myself, but this phoenix should be able toplease?" His eyes were wide and pleading.

"All right, Harry. If you think so." she said, her expression softening. Of course, she had confidence in him. If he had a plan, it would work.

"WellI don't even know if this is possible, but" He looked up at the phoenix and asked, "Would you take me to the fountain outside Myrddin's Den?" Harry didn't know what the phoenix would do or if it even understood what he was saying — or how to find the fountain, but he took a chance.

The bird hovered above him expectantly. Harry smiled and turned to Ginny. Kissing her quickly, he said, "Take care of Hermione. Here." He flipped his D.A. coin to her as he grabbed the phoenix' golden tail and disappeared in a brief flash.

She caught the coin, but if a gold feather hadn't floated into her hand next to it, Ginny wouldn't have believed what had just happened.

The sun was setting as Harry appeared in the clearing near the cave. The remaining snow on the ground took on a golden glow, but the temperature was dropping fast. Harry realized, too late, that he'd forgotten to grab his rucksack. He felt around in his pocket for the small mirror that would connect him to Ginny. Smiling, he called her name as the phoenix settled gently on his shoulder.

Once they'd opened the mirrors, Harry smoothed the phoenix' feathers and asked her to sing. When the song began, he turned expectantly to the fountain. As the song went on, he eagerly pulled the bracken and leaves out of the basin. When the song was done, the quiet of the clearing was broken only by the rustle of branches brushing against each other in the light breeze. But Harry's confidence never wavered. The music had filled him with an unshakeable faith. He was rewarded in a few minutes by a trickle of water coming out of the mouths of the two bird statues, falling to the basin below.

Grinning in excitement, Harry turned to the bird and said, "Thanks! You don't know what this means" Conjuring a bottle identical to the blue one that Hermione had next to her bed, Harry began to hum himself. When the water became a steady stream, he held the bottle underneath and filled it. Between the phoenix' song and finding the water, Harry felt full of hope for the first time since the attack on Hermione.

When the bottle was full, Harry closed the cap and warded the fountain closed. He transfigured the fountain to appear as it had before the water flowed. If anyone came by, Muggle or wizard, they would see an old relic filled with bracken and debris. The sun was completely down, but the sky still held a faint glow. Stars were just beginning to show. Soon it would be completely dark.

Tucking the potion bottle in his pocket, Harry turned to the phoenix. Then he heard it -- the crunch of people walking through the brush off to his left. Someone was coming, probably several someones. They weren't speaking, but they were getting closer. "Hide!" he whispered, wondering how he could possibly hide a rather large red and gold bird.

The phoenix disappeared in a brief flash just seconds before he heard a deep voice whisper through the trees, "Keep it quiet, Padgett. You never know."

Harry cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself and plunged into the thick underbrush, his back flat against the side of the hill. Ignoring the prickly bare branches scraping his hands and face, he held his breath as the men passed by him and entered the cave. He counted five of them. Other than a murmured, "_Lumos!_" the men didn't make a sound, but Harry knew who they were. Or at least he knew what they were. Their black robes and white masks gave them away.

As soon as they were gone, Harry Apparated to Honeydukes. He'd only stayed to try to get a look at them. Letting himself into the tunnel to Hogwarts through the trap door in the candy store's basement, Harry tried to speak to Ginny with his mirror. "Is Ron back? Can you meet me by the one-eyed witch?" There was no answer.

Harry was concerned when Ginny didn't answer, but kept going until he reached the slide. He opened the witch just a crack to see what was on the other side, and he saw Filch and Mrs. Norris walking slowly down the hall. Distracting Mr. Filch by casting a spell to knock over the suits of armor at the far end of the hall, Harry slipped through the small opening in the witch's hump. Still wearing the Disillusionment Charm, he was almost home free, except for the muddy footprints he was leaving. Mrs. Norris noticed them. The nosy cat left Filch's side and hurried toward Harry. Filch called after her grumpily, "Come backit must have been a false alarm."

Casting a Cleansing Charm to remove the mud, Harry left Filch glaring at the now empty corridor and hurried back to Gryffindor Tower. He wanted to find Ginny. Something must have happened or she would have answered the mirror. He wasn't in suspense for very long. She and Ron were sitting by the fire looking tense.

Because it was just after dinner on a Saturday night, the common room was full of mostly younger students, studying and playing games like Exploding Snap. Harry was unable to stop grinning as he headed straight over to his friends. He shouted, "I got it!" despite the serious look on both their faces. He thought his success would cheer them up.

Ron shook his head at him, his lips a thin line as he leapt to his feet. "You got it! Youyou put my sister in dangeryou got her in trouble with McGonagall and Dumbledoreand you're just so happy because you got it! Bloody hell, Harry." Ron was out of breath, red faced and furious. Lowering his voice he continued. "And if you're thinking about giving my girlfriend some weird water cure that bloody insane ghost told you about, YOU ARE CRAZY!" He shouted the last three words.

Holding her hands out palms up in supplication, Ginny shook her head. "Sorry, Harry. Ron took away my mirror when I told him where you'd gone. II hope everything went all right."

"Went all right! That's rich." Ron began to sputter in anger again. "Anything could have happened to you, Harry. You may not care about putting yourself in danger, but you're not dragging my sisteror my girlfriend along for the ride. Andand you didn't take me with you!"

Ginny swatted his arm. "You prat! Lower your voice. People are starting to stare." The three of them, including Harry, scanned the common room briefly. People were, indeed, abandoning their studies and their games to stare at Ron towering over Harry, red faced with anger. It was quite a sight really.

Parvati, Seamus and Dean walked through the portrait hole. The boys continued walking up the stairs to the boy's dormitories, but Parvati began setting things out on one of the study tables. She looked over at Ginny sympathetically. Remembering that the older girl thought she'd caught her crying over Harry earlier, Ginny shrugged and shook her head.

Ron and Harry ignored the other sixth years completely as they continued to argue. "Hear me out, Ronplease. I couldn't take you. Ginny was never in any danger, butI can't talk here. Too many people are listening." He didn't want anyone to know he was making illegal Portkeys especially ones capable of getting through the Hogwarts' wards. Looking Ron straight in the eye, he asked, "What happened to trusting me? You know I wouldn't hurt Ginny."

Sitting on the sofa heavily, Ron shook his head. "What about you trusting me? I don't know what's happening any more. You don't tell me anything. I spend all my time thinking about Hermione. It's like I'm treading water and I can barely keep my head above the surface."

Harry sat down next to him, thinking of all the things he'd kept to himself lately. "I knowI guesswe should talk more. And you've had to do too much by yourself." Crookshanks jumped on the sofa and nudged his hand. Harry obligingly scratched the ginger cat's ears as he settled into his lap and purred. "Speaking of Hermione, she's not all alone is she?"

Ginny said quietly, "She's sleeping again. Luna volunteered to watch over her. She woke briefly for dinner." Looking nervously at Ron, she continued, "That's when I told them where you'd gone and why"

Seeing that Ron was trying hard to cool his temper, Harry said quietly, "I'm really sorry. I guess I didn't think it through."

His voice finally under control, Ron said, "I know you meant well with the healing water, but seriously, we can't just mess around here. This is Hermione's lifewe have to get it right." Ron stood up and stretched wearily. He had that exhausted, worried look that he tried so carefully to hide from Hermione for the past two weeks.

Ginny put one arm around her brother. Standing on tiptoe, she kissed Ron's cheek and whispered, "It's all going to work out."

"I'll give this to you, Ron," Harry said, handing him the water. "But I think you should ask Hermione what she thinks before you throw it down the drain. She likes to be in charge, you know." His half grin at Ron became a whole grin as his friend smiled, too.

"Maybe we can have it analyzed or something," Ron said, looking at the liquid in the bottle.

Suddenly tired, Harry leaned against the back of the sofa and covered his face with his hands. Ginny sat down beside him and took one of his hands in hers so he had to look up. "I put your rucksack in your dorm room." She smiled gently and began running her wand over his cuts with whispered Healing Charms.

Looking at the two of them, Ron said, "What happened? How did you get all those scratches?"

"I hid in a bush after the phoenix disappeared," Harry said, as if it was an everyday occurrence.

Ginny had finished healing him. "That doesn't sound too good. Why did you have to hide?"

"Someone was coming. Didn't you see them?" Harry asked, worried. She was supposed to be watching his back.

"Ron took my mirror" Ginny answered.

Waving his hand, Harry retrieved her mirror with a Summoning Charm and floated it to her. To the casual observer, it would look like she had summoned it herself since she was the only one holding a wand. Harry looked up at his friend and asked in a tired voice, "What were you thinking, Ron? I"

Ron tried to grab the mirror as it flew through the air. "You know as well as I do that Dumbledore knows about these mirrors. And what about this phoenix?"

"Drop it, Ron. I didn't get into trouble. Professor Dumbledore just asked to borrow the mirror. He was very polite." Ginny rolled her eyes at her brother.

Hoping to avoid a renewed argument, Harry asked, "What's going on with Parvati and Neville?" The others looked across the room to where Parvati was styling Neville's hair.

Ginny said, "Ahthey were talking about it yesterday at lunch. Lavender and Parvati have decided to give poor Neville a makeover. You know, new hair and clothes. Neville said that he wanted to ask Luna out for Valentine's Day, but she never notices him."

"Never notices him? They're together all the time." Ron shook his head. He looked appalled at the sight of Neville having his hair done.

Harry agreed. "What is she doing?" Parvati seemed to be making Neville's hair stand on end with some sort of spike charm.

"I think it lookswell," Ginny said, unable to finish her sentence.

Lavender Brown came through the portrait hole, looking flushed and somewhat disheveled. Her tie was crooked and her robes looked wrinkled. She joined Neville and Parvati at the makeover table.

Shaking his head over poor Neville's plight, Harry changed the subject again. "Only two weeks until Valentine's Day, Ron. What're you doing for Hermione?"

Both Weasleys looked at Harry like he'd grown feathers. "II haven't thought about it yet," Ron answered hesitantly.

Ginny, however, went on the offensive. Turning toward Harry with her hands on her hips, she asked, "So what's your plan?"

Faced with a potentially angry girlfriend, Harry said, "I thoughtwe could go to Hogsmeade again. Just the two of us."

Ginny's expression changed as she pretended to consider his idea. "I can see you've put a lot of thought into thisjust remember, adventure is one thing, but when it comes to Valentine's Daywell, a girl likes to be swept off her feet."

"Give me a chance?" Harry asked, appealing to her. He leaned in so their faces were close.

"Iguess I'll have tosay yes," as if there was ever any doubt. Ginny stood up at that, ignoring the fact that her boyfriend seemed ready to kiss her. "I'm going back to the infirmaryyou better go get cleaned up, Harry. I'll see you later." She flipped her long hair behind her shoulder as she walked slowly to the portrait hole.

Harry looked confused as he watched her walk slowly away. "I'll never understand your sister, Ron," he said as she disappeared.

"At least you have a plan for Valentine's DayI've got nothing." Ron looked down at the two rucksacks at his feet, bulging with all of Hermione's books. Ron had never been so caught up on his homework in his life.

Shaking his head, Harry admitted, "I don't have a planI was bluffing. Do you think she sensed it? She's right. I spend all my time thinking about other thingsadventures andwhacking at training dummies. I haven't spent any time on romance." Harry's forehead furrowed in thought for a moment, and then he stood up and clapped Ron on the back. "You on the other hand, have spent all your time devoting yourself to Hermione's homework. What could be more romantic than that? At least from Hermione's point of view." He grinned at Ron who looked relieved.

Giving a self satisfied nod, Ron said, "Maybe I should arrange a trip to the library for her on Valentine's Day. It's probably her favorite place in the world and she hasn't been there in weeksOf course, I'll need to practice the _Mobilicorpus!_ spell."

"She'll be cured by then, Ron. You could take her anywherebut you may be right. The library might be the best choice."

After a few more minutes of catching up, Ron left to take Hermione the homework he'd collected. Harry took a long hot shower and put on his flannel pajama bottoms and a fresh tee shirt. He spread his Transfiguration homework out on his bed, glad of the quiet. Since it was early on a Saturday night, none of his roommates were around. Wishing Ginny had stuck around, Harry tried to focus on reading, but he couldn't. Just thinking about her brought him a warm feeling. He sat back against the pillows on his headrest.

After reading the steps to change a houseplant into a maple tree for the third time, he decided to give up. It was still early enough that he could get dressed and go find Ginny. Maybe she'd like to make a trip to the kitchens. Unfortunately, he couldn't seem to move his legs. Something heavy was holding him down. He tried moving again and heard a quiet giggle.

Smiling happily he reached forward and removed the Invisibility Cloak, revealing Ginny sitting on his legs. She was wearing the Muggle exercise clothes she liked to wear when she was lounging around the common room.

"How" Harry began. He'd taken his contacts out when he showered so he was wearing his glasses. That and his black hair sticking up in all directions made him look younger.

Ginny put her finger over his mouth to stop him from speaking. "I thought it would be nice to see youface to faceand alone for once," she said.

Harry agreed. They always seemed to be surrounded by classmates and teachers. Now thanks to his Invisibility Cloak, they were alone in his dorm room for who knows how long. Accidentally knocking his book off the bed, Harry leaned toward her. "It's more thannice," he said quietly. He ran his hands up her bare arms and pulled her close. Then he reached behind her head and released the clip holding her hair back. Watching appreciatively as her hair tumbled down around her face, Harry kissed her forehead lightly and said, "I've wanted to be alone with you all day."

"I know, me too," she answered, closing her eyes.

Harry studied her face. She looked so sweet, waiting for his kiss with her eyes closed, her lashes dark against her pale skin. Her lips were parted in a small expectant smile.

In slow motion, Harry touched her lips. As they deepened the kiss, she melted against him. They fell back against his pillows with Ginny on top. Soon their kisses were steaming up his glasses. When he moved his lips to leave light kisses on her neck, she gave a small gasp. "Ohyou like that" whispered Harry huskily.

"IHarry, your bird is watching us," Ginny said, pushing away from him and sitting up.

Harry looked around, straightening his glasses. Sure enough, the phoenix had rejoined them. "WellI didn't ask her to come," Harry looked just as disappointed as she did.

"Do you think she's planning to stay with you?"

"I don't know. Maybe she just wanted to make sure I made it back to Hogwarts. She seems so smart, doesn't she?" Harry moved off his bed to caress the swan-sized bird.

Smiling at him, Ginny picked up his Invisibility Cloak. "I guess I better leave. Goodnight, Harry." He protested, but she insisted that he needed time alone with his new familiar.

After she left, he turned around to the phoenix and said, "Sowhat do you want to do first." The bird sang a short, sweet note and disappeared.

Except for Harry's phoenix, life at Hogwarts settled back into a normal routine. The following weekend Gryffindor beat Ravenclaw in the most boring Quidditch game ever. The Snitch showed up in the first half-hour. According to Ron, who had a bird's eye view of the pitch, Harry caught the tiny gold ball before Cho even noticed.

Busy with classes and Quidditch, Harry didn't have time to work on finding a piece of tanglewood, even if he could think of somewhere to look. As time passed, he began to wonder if the tree was even real. He began to believe that Neville was right. Tanglewood trees were just a myth.

Luna was right about the summons stone, as Harry had almost daily proof. And he didn't have to wait to activate the statue. The phoenix appeared and disappeared whenever she felt like it. She'd show up in a corridor or over his bed, sing a little greeting, then leave. Her visits were sporadic and followed no discernible pattern.

The only time he could count on her appearing, short of using the summons stone, was whenever he found a moment to be alone with Ginny. If they found a quiet spot behind a statue or a suit of armor, the phoenix would show.

"Do you think she's jealous or something?" Ginny asked, about the third time it happened.

Wondering if maybe it was his girlfriend getting a little jealous, Harry said, "I think she somehow knows that my heart's beating fasterso she comes to check up on things."

"Your heart's beating faster?" Ginny asked, pulling him back to her and placing her palm over his heart.

"Whenever we're alone," he answered, his green eyes darkening.

After that, Ginny quit worrying about the sudden appearance of Harry's phoenix. She had an annoying habit of interrupting her alone time with her boyfriend, but maybe it wasn't so bad knowing that she was making Harry's blood pressure rise.

Things changed later in the week. Harry was flying high on his broom during Quidditch practice about to attempt the new "drop off" dive. This time when the phoenix appeared, she grabbed Harry in her strong talons and disappeared without any warning. Lucky that he kept a strong grip on his Firebolt or his broom might have shattered when it hit the ground after she Disapparated with the two of them.

They emerged in a lush green forest, trees bursting with leaves, flowers in full bloom. The phoenix sang happily. She obviously thought she'd done him a great service. But he knew that if he didn't return to Hogwarts quickly, he'd be in big trouble. Harry stroked the soft feathers on her head, and said, "Thanks girl, but it'll have to be some other time."

He Apparated to the gates with the winged boars and flew toward the Quidditch pitch. While the team noticed his absence, they assumed he'd just been flying too high and far.

While they hadn't yet seen the phoenix themselves, Ron and Hermione were sympathetic as always. After talking things over, Hermione doing most of the talking, they decided to have the healing water analyzed before she drank it. Hermione reasoned that if the phoenix made the fountain flow, then it probably was healing water.

So they made up a story about the water being sent to them from Neville's grandmother's friend in France, and asked Snape to analyze it, leaving Harry's name out of it completely. Snape made no promises.

As Harry took his seat in Potions class, Snape looked around the room with his usual glare, daring the students to be less than perfect so he could trounce on them. When no one spoke out of turn or ran in late, he seemed disappointed. Raising one eyebrow, he said in a deep voice, "Your assignment is on the board. Follow the instructions carefully. You have one hour."

Some students scrambled to the supplies set out on the narrow table at the side of the class. Others pulled caldrons and equipment from their storage areas. Ron set up silently while Harry finished reading the instructions. The two of them were sitting in the very back row of worktables.

"Two teaspoons of Streeler trailthat sounds nasty," said Harry.

"Remind me. What's a Streeler again?" asked Ron who wasn't taking Magical Creatures this year.

"It's a giant snail. Harmless really except that the slime it leaves behind burns everything it touches." Pointing to the heavy gloves sitting on the table, Harry said, "Better wear those."

"This isn't a group assignment," said Snape as he passed their table, looking suspicious. "Five points from Gryffindor for talking — each."

Harry and Ron frowned. They hadn't even noticed him patrolling. But after that they worked silently. N.E.W.T. Potions was generally a quiet, focused class. Harry's concoction simmered slowly, a fine purple mist gathering above the mixture, just as the instructions said it should.

Harry noticed Crabbe and Goyle fanning the bright orange steam coming out of their cauldrons while Malfoy looked on with a disgusted sneer.

Harry looked at the clock on the wall. In thirty seconds, he had to add the venomous Streeler slime. He put the heavy gloves on and reached for the bottle and the measuring spoon. But out of nowhere, in a now familiar flash, Harry's phoenix appeared, grabbed him by the shoulders and disappeared. Everyone, including Snape, was too busy dealing with Crabbe and Goyle's overflowing cauldrons to notice the brief flash of light. Of course, Ron noticed, but he kept his head down and continued to work.

Reappearing in the lush forest, Harry could only laugh. She didn't mean anything by it. Maybe she thought she was saving him from the icky venom. She landed on a low branch in front of him. Grinning at her as he smoothed her feathers, Harry said, "You may have gotten me in trouble this time, girl."

Trilling her response, she fluffed her feathers for him. With a low chuckle, he said, "I need a name for youI can't keep calling you girlthanks for looking out for me."

Since the Hogsmeade Dementor warning, the castle had been locked down. The main gates were locked and warded shut. They'd put an intruder ward on the one-eyed witch so Harry tried Apparating to the Shrieking Shack. Relieved to find the tunnel was still there, he pressed the knot in the tree expecting it to still the Whomping Willow's treacherous branches. When it didn't work, he tried a different knot. Then he tried a few spells, like _Immobulus!_ and _Freezus!_ Nothing worked.

Knowing he was risking his life, Harry made a run for it, dodging the branches that were falling and sweeping all around him. He didn't make it very far, but the branch that caught him in the gut sent him flying well clear of the tree. Although he was a little scratched and bruised, Harry counted himself lucky to have survived.

He met up with Hagrid in the courtyard. "There yeh are, arry. My, yeh gave me a fright. Yeh weren't in with Professor Snape soweren't sure what I was gonna do. Headmaster sent me to find yeh. Best go straight away. I've got to go check on the Merpeople. There've been some worries about the Grindylows getting out of hand durin' the cold weather. Ice mice'll get yeh past the gargoyle."

"Ithank you, Hagrid. Say hello to the Merpeople for me." Squaring his shoulders, Harry did as Hagrid suggested and went straight to Dumbledore's office. He figured they'd noticed his absence since it took so much time to get past the Whomping Willow. Determined to face the Headmaster's questions bravely, he hurried past the gargoyle and knocked loudly on the partly open door.

"Come in, come in, dear boy! So nice of you to come so quickly." Cornelius Fudge, wearing a bright green weskit and a big phony smile was sitting with Professor Dumbledore. Looking warily around the room at the mostly sleeping portraits, Harry walked slowly to the seat next to Fudge.

"I'm so grateful that Professor Snape allowed you to leave class before it ended. Busy times at the Ministry." Fudge broke off uneasily. Perhaps he finally noticed that no one but him was speaking. "I'll get right to business. We at the Ministry of Magic, after an extremely thorough investigation into the matter, have declared that Sirius Black was innocent of all charges" Seeing the shocked look on Harry's face, Fudge's voice faltered a little bit before he continued. "As his principal heir that means that you, Harry Potter, will be the recipient of all his confiscated properties and bank accounts."

When he finished, he looked at Harry expectantly. Harry wondered if he expected him to be grateful. When he finally spoke, he kept his voice low, forcing himself to sound calm, but it wasn't easy. "I can't believe this. After all this time, what good do you think Sirius' money will do me?"

"It's a considerable estate, Harry." Fudge's face seemed frozen into a mask of oily charm. His voice sounded magnanimous as though he was presenting Harry with a gift.

Disgusted, Harry's tone took a caustic turn. "Sirius has been innocent all this time. I knew it — anyone close to him knew it. It was only people like you that refused to see. You were the first one on the scene when Peter Pettigrew blew up those Muggles. You railroaded Sirius into Azkaban without even a trial and here you are handing out his money like it belonged to you."

It finally dawned on Fudge that he wasn't going to be able to use the public acknowledgement of Sirius' innocence and subsequent release of his estate to Harry Potter as a publicity stunt. If the boy felt this way, it would be best to keep the whole thing quiet. His junior assistant had warned him that the situation could go sour, so he had come prepared. Pulling out one official letter, exonerating Sirius of all crimes, and another transferring all his confiscated property to Harry's name, he quickly laid the letters on Dumbledore's desk and unceremoniously left by floo.

Tears sprang to Harry's eyes, but didn't fall as his thoughts churned. He stared out the window at the cloudy afternoon. Phoenix song filled the air. Heartened by the sound, Harry reached out and ran his hand along the letter with Sirius' name on it. "Better late than never."

Dumbledore finally spoke. "I'm sorry, Harry. I wish I could have prevented this, or given you some warning that Minister Fudge was on his way. At least we convinced him to leave the reporters out of this meeting. He wanted old Fitz Prewett and a photographer."

Harry sighed, "Small favors" Looking over at Fawkes' perch, he asked, "Where'sdid you hearwhere's Fawkes?" He was sure he'd heard the trill of a phoenix.

"Sadly, Fawkes is out somewhere right now. Probably flying through the forest to stretch his wings. I'm sorry you missed him." Dumbledore didn't seem curious about the song. If anything, he looked full of grandfatherly concern. "Harry" he began.

But Harry wasn't having any of it. He reckoned that the Headmaster stopped confiding in him months ago. Except for what he'd learned staying in Grimmauld Place in December, Harry had no idea what the Order was doing, or Voldemort for that matter. No one had even bothered to explain why Hogwarts was still locked down. If they weren't going to confide in him, he certainly knew how to keep his own council.

So he interrupted Dumbledore before he could begin. "If there's nothing else, Professor? I should get back to Potions. I didn't exactly ask permission to leave." Harry stood up, taking both of the letters that Fudge brought and tucking them into a pocket.

Professor Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, taking in Harry's slightly torn and scratched appearance, including a rather deep cut on his cheek. His fingers were steepled and his blue eyes were creased in amusement as he asked, "Harry, is there perhaps something you'd like to tell me?"

Wondering briefly if one of the portraits had reported his mysterious phoenix friend to the Headmaster, Harry resisted the urge to scan their faces. Instead he tried to adopt a look of wide-eyed innocence and said, "Nothingsir. Thank you." Turning to leave, Phineas Nigellus' portrait gave him a knowing wink. He left feeling like he didn't fool anybody. Dumbledore must know he had a long list of secrets.

Harry had no intention of returning to Potions. He wanted to contact Remus about these letters. But just as he'd taken a few steps away from the gargoyle, a flustered Sophie Moon approached him. "Ohthank heaven, Harry. I was going to go to Professor Dumbledore. It's BlaiseI think Malfoy's done something to him."

Shrugging his shoulders, Harry asked, "Like what, Sophie? Where is Zabini?" Both of the Slytherins had been coming to the D.A. for months now so Harry knew them fairly well.

Still a little out of breath, she said, "That's just it. We were supposed to meetout in Greenhouse Twelve." She blushed furiously despite the fact that her eyes were filling with tears. "I waited for himbut he never showed."

As gently as he could, Harry asked, "Couldn't he have juststood you up or something?" He gave her an apologetic look.

Her mouth crumpled. For a moment Harry was afraid he'd made her cry. Running his hand through his messy hair, he said, "I'm sorrydon't listen to me. What do I know? We can find him. Let me show you something." He pulled a piece of parchment out of his pocket, and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Sophie gave a little gasp as she watched the lines appear on the Marauder's map. "You really do have a few tricks up your sleeve, don't you, Harry. How did you make this?"

"II can't take credit for it. But it's very useful sometimes."

"There he is!" she pointed to Greenhouse Twelve. "Don't I feel stupid. He must have just been late." In her relief, she didn't notice Harry's puzzled look. "See you later," she called as she began to move away, presumably to go meet Blaise.

"Wait!" Harry called after her. Catching up, he pointed to the map. "There's something strange here. Blaise isn't moving. Even when people sit, their dot usually wavers."

"Maybe he fell asleep?" Sophie suggested.

"It's possible, but if he fell asleep, his little dot would look like this one." He pointed to the dot of Argus Filch in his office with little "zzz's" coming off of it. "Let me walk out there with you. It won't take long."

The two of them found an unconscious Blaise Zabini stuffed behind a bench and covered with a tarp in Greenhouse Twelve. After reviving him with an "_Ennervate!_" spell, Sophie insisted that Madam Pomfrey check him over. According to Blaise, he'd been hit over the head with a large flowerpot when he walked in on Crabbe and Goyle searching for something.

As they carried Blaise into the infirmary on a conjured stretcher, Harry heard Snape's languid, but utterly sarcastic voice behind him. "So this is where you disappeared to, Potter. Just couldn't stay away from the infirmary." Harry turned around and saw Snape leaning against the doorway. Pressing his lips together, he told himself not to say anything because anytime he spoke, he just irritated Snape. No matter what explanation he gave, Snape would draw his own conclusions.

Crossing the floor in a self assured stride that made his robes billow behind him, Snape continued. "Twenty points from Gryffindor for leaving class without permission. The Headmaster shall hear about this, Potter. Don't be surprised if this time you're expelled."

Harry bit his lip to prevent himself from speaking.

While Snape taunted Harry, Madam Pomfrey floated Blaise onto a nearby bed and began to fuss over him. Sophie followed Blaise, quietly asking the matron questions.

"Professor Snape!" called Sophie. "Thank you so much for coming. We found him, butcan you believe that Crabbe and Goyle would actually do this?"

Harry always knew that the Slytherins saw Snape very differently from the Gryffindors, but this was the first time he'd witnessed it first hand. Professor Snape spoke with both Sophie and Blaise, listening carefully as they told their story. They obviously felt better afterwards, but Harry couldn't help thinking it wasodd.

Snape moved away from the Slytherins after promising to give Crabbe and Goyle a month of detentions. He stopped short, seeing Harry's curious expression. "What is it now, Potter?" 

"I just can't believe you gave Crabbe and Goyle a punishment. Seems to me it's a first. I wonder." He stopped himself.

"You wonder." Snape stared at Harry, daring him to finish.

Harry recklessly obliged. "I wonder if there would be any punishment if they'd clobberedoh, let's say, a Hufflepuff?"

"Fifty points from Gryffindor for insulting a teacher, Potter. When will you ever learn?" Snape shook his head. "You're so sure you have all the answers. You know nothing about people like Vincent and Gregory." Feeling like he'd made his point, Snape strode toward the other end of the infirmary.

Keeping his eyes on Snape, Harry followed him slowly to the partition in the corner. As he came around the screen, he saw Snape pouring from a blue bottle. Instead of her usual potion, the glass looked like it contained water.

Hermione was awake. Her eyes heavy with sleep, she said, "Cheers, Harry!" Then she drank the water down and sank back into her pillow.

Smiling at his friend despite the fact that Snape was glaring at him. "What are you doing here, Potter? I've asked you before to leave Miss Granger's treatment to the professionals. You can come back later with Mr. Weasley."

"I'm not leaving, Professor," Harry said quietly, smiling as he watched Hermione's face change. The ashen look of her skin was fading. The dark circles under her eyes were disappearing. Harry watched as before their very eyes, her worn appearance cleared. It was magic at its best. He only wished that Ron were here to see it.

Snape forgot to argue with Harry as he, too, watched the miraculous change in Hermione. Harry moved closer to her pillow. A small smile formed on her lips although her eyes were still closed. "I know you're both still staring at mebut the question is why?" She opened her eyes and smiled. Looking from Harry to Snape and back again, she had her answer.

"So do I look better? Because I feel likelike I couldplay Quidditch without a broom!"

"Where's your coin? We'll call Ron." Harry said, bursting with excitement. "Maybe there's a way to make a school wide announcement."

Hermione sat up in bed on her knees and hugged Harry tightly. "Thanks, Harry. I'm sorry we didn't believe you."

Cracking a big grin, he hugged her back. "There's nothing to be sorry for. Having you healthy is all the thanks I need. It worked!" They forgot Snape was there in their excitement.

Professor Snape was not stupid. He'd examined the water in the blue bottle to find it was ordinary spring water. There was no way it should have cured Miss Granger, yet it had obviously worked. If the water came from Potter, perhaps dark magic was involved.

Calling Poppy over to help, Snape ran the tests necessary to be sure that Hermione was really cured, waiting for his chance to confirm something. The Headmaster didn't like him accusing his golden boy although he didn't seem to trust the boy much himself. He would need some sort of proof of wrongdoing. He saw his opportunity when Neville Longbottom arrived.

The happy crowd around Hermione's bed was a little noisy so no one noticed Professor Snape quietly speak to Neville. "Your Great Aunt will be glad to know that her healing water has been a success. Where did you say she got it? Lourdes?"

As always, Neville was nervous just being in the same room as Snape, but he answered bravely, even if his voice wavered slightly, "Nit was somewherein France."

Snape looked surprised. "ReallyLourdes is in Franceisn't that what you told me before? Perhaps I'm not recalling it correctly."

Neville caved in, hoping to get Professor Snape to leave him alone. "Yesit was Lourdesthat's what I meant to say."

"You're pathetic, Longbottom. It wasn't Lourdes, and it wasn't your Great Aunt. Do you even have a Great Aunt? You know it would be very easy to check. Perhaps a quick owl to your grandmother could clear this up."

Neville began to tremble slightly which unfortunately made his new spiky hairdo wiggle a little. "Please don't owl Gran, Professor. She."

Their conversation had grown loud enough to attract everyone's attention, but neither Neville nor Snape noticed.

His face a furious frown, Snape went in for the kill. "She what? She won't know anything about it? Tell the truth, Longbottom. You had nothing to do with obtaining this water. I'll have you expelled for telling falsehoods." Neville began to hyperventilate.

To save his friend, Harry sighed, and put his hands in the air. "All right. You caught me. I brought the water to Hermione, but we wanted to be sure it was all right so we lied. We didn't think you'd help if you knew I was involved. Neville was just trying to help."

Snape's left eye twitched as he stared venomously at Harry. This was what he'd been hoping for. "You're coming with me to the Headmaster, Potter. I've suspected for some time that you were up to something. Now I have proof. There is certainly no spring with water like this on Hogwarts grounds."

"I'll go quietly, Professor. Just leave my friends out of this. They had nothing to do with it." Harry looked around at his friends. Their faces were serious, ranging from pity to anger. Whispering so only Ginny could hear, Harry said, "Snape sure knows how to suck the life out of a party."

The smile on her face gave Harry the confidence he needed to follow Snape out of the infirmary. He'd been in worse scrapes before this one. "Good luck!" she said quietly. The others echoed her sentiment as he left the infirmary.

Once they were alone in the torch lit corridor, Snape rounded on Harry. They were about even in height now, but Snape was bulkier and much more practiced at intimidating someone. He stepped toward Harry, backing him into the stone wall of the corridor. "I've got you where I want you now, Potter. You're going to have to tell the Headmaster everything, where you've been disappearing, who you've been meet"

In a flash of fire, Harry found himself in the now familiar woodland setting. The phoenix hovered in front of him, her head tilted as she examined him. He smiled. "I'm so relieved to see you, girl. That was a tight spot. I'm not sure what to do. If I try to go back right nowI'll probably just be in more trouble."

Harry looked into her sweet face and remembered that he'd brought her some Ginseng root. Dumbledore had told him that they were Fawkes' favorite. He rifled through his pockets, looking for the package. It was in the same pocket as the letters about Sirius.

By the time the phoenix finished her treat, Harry had decided. His talk with Remus about the letters couldn't wait. Maybe his guardian could help him get back to Hogwarts since the secret passages were blocked.

As the phoenix flew to the top of a nearby tree, Harry called, "See you tomorrow." Then he Apparated to Grimmauld Place. Although he and Remus Lupin were joint owners of Order Headquarters, Harry knocked on the door and waited.

Tonks answered, her wand drawn. "Harry! Whoaget in here! You have everyone in an uproar."

His heart full of trepidation, Harry led the way toward the large kitchen. When Harry visited before Christmas, there were always several members of the Order on hand, especially at tea time, so Harry was surprised that the only people around the large wooden table were Mrs. Weasley, Professor Moody and Remus Lupin.

Mrs. Weasley let out a delighted squeal. "Harry, dear! You're all right." She threw her arms around him in a tight hug. Harry hugged her back, glad that someone seemed happy to see him. Moody and Lupin wore somewhat darker expressions.

From the doorway behind them, Tonks said, "Don't anyone get upI'll call Dumbledore back and tell him Harry showed up here. We can call off the search."

As Mrs. Weasley released him and busied herself making tea, Harry sat down next to Professor Moody. "I'm sorry to worry everyone. It'sit's not something I have complete control over."

Remus asked, "What happened, Harry? Professor Snape's accused you of Apparating away from Hogwarts to get out of trouble. He said you flashed fire in his face to hide your escape."

Laughing softly, Harry said, "He should read _Hogwarts: A History_, then he'd know that's not possible. Actually, I came here to talk to you about these." He pulled the letters Fudge gave him out of his pocket and laid them on the table.

Remus stared down at the envelopes. "Harry, II have copies of these letters. I was going to try to contact you. Butyou're in pretty big trouble. Leaving school without permission could get you expelled. If you didn't Apparate."

Staring at the envelopes, Harry couldn't help but think that his life was sure complicated sometimes. "I didn't. I couldn'tnot through the wards. There's a different explanation. It's been happening since the last Hogsmeade visit." He set the black phoenix statue on the table and asked, "Do you remember this?"

Moody growled, "You've shown me this a dozen times."

Putting a steaming mug of tea in front of him, Mrs. Weasley said, "Let's give Harry a chance to catch his breath first. How about some nice sandwiches? You should all wait for Professor Dumbledore anyway. He'll be here any minute."

"No need to wait, Molly. As you see, I've arrived." Standing in the doorway, Dumbledore's voice sounded deeper than normal. Behind him, Professor Snape stood in the shadows looking pleased. Tonks followed the two men into the room.

Ignoring their arrival, Remus asked, "Is this from your box, Harry? The one that came from the Potter vault?"

Suddenly worried about discussing everything in front of Snape, Harry became quiet. He would have to consider his words carefully.

As if to confirm that Harry shouldn't trust him, Professor Snape said, "So typical of you to turn up here, Potter, expecting all of us to believe whatever story you've concocted."

Professor Moody stood up and said, "I know Harry better than you, Severus. I'm sure he has a good explanation if we all just take the time to hear it."

"I'm not sure we should talk about this tonight." Remus thought Harry looked frightened and exhausted, like he'd been cornered. He understood that Harry had come to Grimmauld Place, hoping to speak with him about Sirius. Instead he was surrounded by adult wizards, not all of whom had his best interests at heart.

"If nothing else, we need to know how Mr. Potter arrived here tonight," Snape said.

Remus stood up next to Moody and faced Snape. "What makes you an authority over Harry? In this house, he only answers to himself and to me."

In response, Snape sneered. "The last time I saw him we were in the castle. He threw an _Incendio! _spell at me and disappeared. That's how he treats authority. But of course, you'd defend him. What would any of us expect from a werewolf?"

Moody said, "Careful what you say, Severuswe still have to find a way to work together."

Harry jumped to his feet. "Stop! All of this is my fault. I don't want people arguing because of me. I'm not proud of keeping secretsI just don't know what else to do." Harry looked around the room at the surprised faces of the adults.

Looking pleased, Dumbledore spoke for the first time this evening. "Suppose you start at the beginning, Harry. How did you disappear from Hogwarts tonight?"

Shaking his head because he knew it would sound unbelievable, he said, "It wasn't me, Professor. It was this phoenix that keeps following me around." Harry burst out laughing because it just sounded so ridiculous.

Most of the adults in the room looked as though they didn't know how to take his statement. Snape clearly didn't believe him. Remus and Moody looked at him reprovingly. Tonks and Mrs. Weasley seemed shocked. Grinning widely, Harry sat back down at the table and put his hands around his mug of tea. It was still steaming hot.

Only Dumbledore chuckled along with him. He shook his head and said, "Sometime the truth sounds impossible. Does it snatch you away when it senses danger?"

Nodding, Harry said, "I think so. Sometimes she just shows up to sing for a momentlike she's saying hello. Believe meI have no control over where, or when."

"Has anyone else seen your phoenix?" Dumbledore asked.

With a nervous glance toward Mrs. Weasley, Harry said, "Well" He wasn't sure how to tell them the bird seemed to show up every time he was alone with his girlfriend.

Dumbledore was clearly very amused. "Say no more. I understand completely. Something similar happened when I met Fawkes. So what happened this evening?" He sat down next to Harry and conjured himself a cup of tea.

"Ertonight, when we left the infirmaryProfessor Snape wasn't particularly happy with me. When we stopped in the hall on the way to your office, she came out of nowhere. Suddenly I wassomewhere safe. Then I Apparated here becausetruthfully it's getting harder to get back into Hogwarts."

"Where were you? Where is this somewhere safe?'" Snape asked, his animosity evident in every syllable. He still looked as though he'd like to hang Harry up by his thumbs and make him talk.

Harry looked up at him, surprised by the vehemence of his question. Before he could answer, Remus said, "You don't have to answer that, Harry. I have one for you, Severus. As Harry's guardian, I have to question what you were doing menacing Harry so badly that this phoenix thought he needed saving?"

"You don't seriously believe this ridiculous story" Snape sat down and folded his arms in front of him. "If he has a phoenix, where is it now?" He gave them all a smug look, like he'd found the hole in Harry's story.

Ignoring Snape's question, Professor Dumbledore spoke cheerfully. "This is wonderful news. It explains so much. If I'm not mistaken, your phoenix arrived sometime during your last visit to Hogsmeade. That's when we started to notice your odd disappearances."

"Yessort ofbut she isn't my phoenix, sir. She'sshe first came with the summons stone." Putting the stone back in his pocket, he said, "I'd bring her here now, but she was headed to her nest. It's sort of late. I wouldn't want to disturb her." He looked apologetic.

Laughing derisively, Snape said, "So we're expected to accept thisfabricated story without any sort of proof."

Ignoring Snape's comment, the other adults seated themselves around the table. Remus said, "Harry, you should realizeshe's definitely your phoenix."

With infinite patience, Dumbledore explained. "A phoenix is a rather unique animal. You've seen some of what Fawkes can do. Your phoenix is getting to know you. She's testing your connection. She'll probably continue in this way for quite some time. I'm glad for you, Harry. A Phoenix is extremely loyal. She'll help you. I'm sure of it."

Moody spoke up gruffly, "You're leaving something out here. This phoenix arriving is a sign and you know it, Albus."

Acknowledging him with a brief nod, Dumbledore said, "What Professor Moody means is that with the appearance of this phoenix, we can all set aside any doubt that Harry could ever become a dark wizard. A phoenix will only adopt someone whose heart is pure." He looked amused at the scowl on Professor Snape's face.

In fact most of the adults in the room looked amused at that scowl. Finally Snape said slowly, "FineI can accept thatperhaps I've drawn some of the wrong conclusions."

Grinning Remus and Harry looked at each other, thinking the same thing. Sirius would have loved this.

The conversation soon turned to other subjects as the group ate their tea. Other members of the Order filtered into the room, anxious to sample Molly Weasley's cooking. As Harry ate his sandwiches and a delicious apple tart, he was deep in thought. They'd made a start toward trusting each other tonight. Dumbledore and the others seemed ready to accept him now. But did that mean they'd confide in him? Let him help with the Order again? And he had so many secrets of his own -- so much he'd kept to himself. What would they think if they knew? Should he tell them?

Dumbledore gave permission for Harry to spend the night at Grimmauld Place and return to Hogwarts by floo early the next day. So Harry and Remus did have a chance to talk about Sirius' name finally being cleared among other things. Phoenixes and Order business aside, Harry needed some real advice. Valentine's Day was looming large. Ginny's words were echoing in his head, "Adventure is one thing, but when it comes to Valentine's Daywell, a girl likes to be swept off her feet."

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To Be Continued

A/N: Ty Nant Water is the prototype for the healing water in this chapter. The sparkling version comes in a pretty blue bottle and is supposed to have healthy minerals in it.

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A/N: Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

Harry/Ginyfan4ever: You reviewed so fast, I thought you must be psychic! Everything you said about the phoenix was right. Thanks for reviewing!

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Nightwing 509: Niniane wasn't happy about meeting Ginny. How much trouble can a ghost cause? Thanks for writing!

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skeeter 007: Part of the reason for the distance between Harry and Dumbledore has been resolved with the arrival of Harry's phoenix. Thanks for reviewing!

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Ghost Magic19: Not an illusion, but I can see why you might wonder. I will try to update faster. Thanks for writing a review!

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Silly Gillie: Thanks, I'll try!

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Lady of the Dragons2: Thanks for your nice review! History won't exactly repeat itself, but I do think Dumbledore is remarkably like Merlin.

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Inappropriate Goat: Sorry about the cliffhanger. They make me crazy when I'm reading a WIP, but that chapter was already so longThanks for reviewing!

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OrionTheHunter: I think Ginny is the sort of character who doesn't let anything stand in the way. "Anything's possible if you have enough nerve." Anyway, if they'd only listened to Luna. Thanks for writing!

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Hermione Rules7: Thanks for your nice comments. I appreciate your support. Writing is so much fun. Thanks for reviewing!

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rosepetal13: I hadn't thought of that torch connection. It's really good! My idea for the fountain was much simpler and not all that original. I read somewhere that the ancient Irish people had underground caves that were supposed to be the entrance to the other world. These caves had a fountain or spring at the entrance where people would bring gifts in exchange for its healing properties. Thanks for writing!

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athenakitty: Yes, to all three questions! Thanks for reviewing!

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gopha-gurl: Thanks for writing a review!

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Marauder4eva: Parvati hasn't forgotten. Harry and Ginny having problems could mean problems for her and Dean. Thanks for reviewing!

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KandiG85: Dumbledore has been acting strange. Harry really should stay out of the cave. I won't discontinue this story. Thanks for writing!

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Bluemoon52292: Thanks for writing a review!

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hpjr: Sorry about the cliffhanger. I'll try to update soon. Thanks for reviewing!

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MsMissProngs: Thanks!

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corwin: Sorry to be confusing. I was referring to the time Harry was accidentally eavesdropped outside the faculty lounge. Thanks for reviewing!

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Elementation: Glad you like it! Thanks for writing a review!

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SilverWarrior: Thanks for your thoughtful comments. Since Harry can't carry a tune, phoenix song is perfect for him. Thanks for writing!

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Zesuit: Thanks for your nice comments! Thanks for reviewing!

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Inversnaid: Thanks for writing a review!

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Mrs. Sakura Potter: Ioan played Lancelot and I thought his death came as a bit of a shock. Wow, your family sounds huge! Thanks for reviewing!

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Retrieve the Melon: Thanks for your suggestion. And thanks for taking the time to read and review!

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A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	26. A Different War

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks to everybody who reviewed! I love reading them. They help keep me focused. Is it just me? Or did summer pass by really fast this year? Anyway, school starts this week, so its back to the old grind for me...

Chapter 26  
A Different War

Outside the high arched windows the sky was dark and sprinkled with stars. The frost forming around the edges of the glass was the only indication that the night was cold. Harry stood among the scattered remains of several training dummies. Sweat poured off his face as he surveyed the damage. He stripped off his wet shirt and walked over to his bag for a fresh one.

A quiet scraping sound behind him warned him that the fight wasn't over. Moody must have charmed them to regenerate. Without any hesitation, Harry swung around low, firing off spells with both hands as he dove behind a conjured table. His spells sent a few of the offending dummies clattering across the floor. The rest he dispatched with his sabre.

Hearing footsteps behind him, he swung around with his weapon ready — only to find Rhys standing by the door smiling. Summoning a sabre just like the one Harry was holding, he said, "So much for your opponents." He slashed the air with his sabre and asked, "Want some live action?"

Still slightly out of breath, Harry's brow furrowed in confusion. "Where'd you come from? It's kind of late for a fencing lesson."

Rhys answered lightly, "I just got here. I need to see Professor Snape. He said he'd meet me here." Making an 'x' in the air with sabre, Rhys adopted the formal stance for challenging an opponent. "What do you say?" he asked.

Pulling a clean shirt out of his bag, Harry shook his head and laughed. "If only you'd shown up an hour ago. I can't stay…it's late and…I have to meet some friends." He slipped the shirt over his head. 

Rhys dropped his arm so the blade dragged on the floor. "This group of 'friends' wouldn't happen to include Ginny Weasley, would it?" he asked, smiling. "I mean, it's Valentine's and all." He put his weapon away.

Looking puzzled, Harry laughed and said, "You're right, of course, but we had classes all day so we're celebrating tomorrow. We're going to that new place in Hogsmeade -- the one that serves French pastries. Have you ever been there?" Harry had heard about the place from Zach Smith who'd sworn they served standard British pub food along with great French pastries. He figured it had to be better than Madame Puddifoot's.

Watching Harry carefully, Rhys shrugged his shoulders. "I seldom get to Hogsmeade, but Valentine's Day is…difficult…no matter how old you are. Good luck."

Harry wondered briefly if Rhys was about to give him advice about girls. He'd never mentioned a girlfriend before, but then why would he? Before Harry could ask, the two of them heard a feminine voice calling, "Harry…Haaarry!" With a grin, he pulled his mirror out of his bag. Turning his back to Rhys, he spoke quietly with Ginny.

He didn't notice Snape and Moody entering the training room. Examining the shattered pieces of the training dummies, Moody picked up a mannequin head. Looking oddly cheerful, he asked, "Did the Resurrection Spell work?"

Nodding at the usually gruff Defense Professor, Harry put away his mirror. He kept his back to the others as he stuffed his sabre into his bag. At the same time, he pulled his wand out, hoping no one would notice that he had been fighting with just his hands and a blade. He waved his wand and muttered incantations to repair the broken training dummies.

Moody picked up a training dummy that was still in one piece and stiff as a board. "Is this the Ossification Hex you found in your book?"

Nodding, Harry said, "Lays them out flat for a good hour…do you think it would last as long on a person?" Harry had found the _Ossify! _hex, which temporarily turned its victim to bone, in his _Myrddin's Torch_ book. It lasted longer than _Petrificus Totalus! _and couldn't be thrown off as easily.

Moody voice was gruff. "I think you'll find most of your spells have a similar, or stronger, effect in a real life situation. But I've never tried turning anything to bone."

Using his wand, Harry released the dummy from the hex and floated it out of Moody's hands toward the storage shelves.

Interrupting impatiently, Snape snapped at Harry, perhaps from his long habit of dislike. "It's well past curfew, Potter. What are you doing training so late at night?"

Before Harry could answer, Moody stepped forward. "He's my assistant, Snape…He can go anywhere he wants. Staff members don't have a curfew."

Without comment, Harry finished putting the room in order and hurried away. He was anxious to get back to Gryffindor. As he turned the corner, a statue of armor fell off its plinth, blocking his path. Harry was sure Peeves had done it because he could hear a distinctly Peeves-ish cackle echoing further down the hall. He stepped carefully over a sinister looking axe and continued down the hall, only to have some hidden force slip the handle of his bag off his arm.

This time there was no sign of Peeves, but something else told him he wasn't alone -- a distinctly fresh smell, not unlike Ginny's shampoo. "_Accio Invisibility Cloak!"_

Ginny's smiling face appeared as the silvery cloak flew into his hands. "No fair…I was just getting started," she said, making a face at him.

"The mirror call was my first clue." Harry took her hand and continued toward Gryffindor.

Letting her footsteps fall in with his, Ginny said, "I wanted to know where you've been hiding tonight…when are you going to admit that you don't have anything to give me for Valentine's and that's why you wanted to wait until tomorrow? You didn't have time to buy anything during our last Hogsmeade trip."

"What makes you say that?" Harry asked, knowing full well that his girlfriend had spent the last few weeks searching his belongings for signs of a gift.

Hands on her hips, she said, "I searched your backpack while you were gone that day. There wasn't anything remotely resembling a Valentine's gift."

"You're sure…maybe I just took it with me." Harry chose not to remind her that he was pretty good at the Disillusionment Charm.

"I found your note, Harry…or should I say notes." Ginny answered smugly.

"I hope you don't mean what I think you mean." Harry narrowed his eyes and nodded as if considering something. "Fred and George warned me about you."

Ginny smiled. "So you should know that I've looked through everything you own." She shook her head at him, as they reached the corridor near the entrance hall. "You think you're so funny with those notes. 'Ginny, you're getting colder'…and what was the other one… 'try looking in the library under 'Invisible.'' You have to be joking unless…" A gleam of light appeared in her eyes as a thought occurred to her. "Maybe you're hiding the present on you, and keeping it invisible."

Harry's eyes widened as though he was trying to look innocent. That was enough encouragement for Ginny. Turning toward him, she backed him up toward the wall and started feeling around in his pockets. At first the feeling of Ginny rifling through his pockets made Harry laugh softly because it tickled. Then he realized that his girlfriend running her hands over his chest and sides was a different pleasure altogether.

It took Ginny a moment to realize that Harry had stopped laughing and was staring at her, his green eyes lit and his mouth slightly open. His breathing was shallow. She moved her hands up around his neck and leaned in. As their lips met, a familiar current ran through them both. Ginny pressed into him, trying to feel his body through their thick robes. Harry enveloped her in his arms, gently deepening the kiss at the same time.

Out of thin air, Harry's phoenix appeared. But unlike before, she simply landed on his shoulder instead of snatching him away. Harry broke the kiss and said, "Hello, girl…when did you get here?"

Ginny laughed and straightened her robes. "It's still a mood killer…I thought you were planning to have a little talk with her. And haven't you named her yet? You can't keep calling her girl." She was trying not to be jealous, but if she wasn't a phoenix…

"Oh…I thought I'd call her Aurora because she likes to meet me at dawn for a run. Hermione looked it up for me. Aurora means dawn. Since she's the colors of a sunrise, I thought it would fit…she seems to like it." Harry looked proud of himself as he fished some Ginseng roots out of his pockets and gave them to Aurora.

"It suits her, Harry. It's kind of like Auror…only prettier." Ginny smiled. "Maybe I ought to leave the two of you alone. I have some studying to do." She couldn't help wondering if she should be a little more worried about this bird, but at least they were making some progress with the disappearing act.

Harry shook his head and simply said goodnight to Aurora, which, to Ginny's surprise, actually made the phoenix disappear. He wrapped the Invisibility Cloak around her for the rest of their walk. Despite the late hour and the fact that it was a school night, the common room was full of fifth years hunched over their schoolwork. Somewhere a clock chimed eleven.

They said goodnight. Harry needed a shower and Ginny went to find Hermione who had promised to lend her all of her notes from Transfiguration last year.

As Ginny approached the sixth year's dorm, she heard some wild laughing. In truth, the gigglers were primarily Lavender and Parvati. The two of them were trying on clothes and gossiping.

Giving them a brief nod, Ginny headed over to Hermione's bed. "Thanks for the notes. You're making my study group very happy."

Hermione finished braiding her hair and smiled at Ginny. She was all ready for bed, having promised Ron she'd go to sleep early. Pointing to the large stack of notes on her bedside table, she said, "I'm glad to see everyone taking their O.W.L.s so seriously."

Dropping the deep purple robe she was holding up to herself and reaching for a blue one, Lavender Brown spoke in an exasperated tone. "Really, Hermione. You're too much. How can you think about tests right now? We don't even have to worry about O.W.L.s this year. You should be wondering what Ron's planning for tomorrow."

Parvati giggled and whispered something to Lavender, but Ginny was too far away to catch what she'd said.

"And you haven't had any chance for romance in weeks. Right? What with that whole illness thing." The way Lavender lifted her eyebrow as she said, 'romance,' made Ginny gag. She had a pretty good idea of what the older girl's idea of romance entailed. Her opinion must have shown on her face as she pursed her lips and looked Lavender up and down.

But it was Parvati who stepped closer to Ginny, and said, "You really should let us help, Ginny. We don't want a repeat of your last trip to Hogsmeade, do we?"

'We…who's we?' thought Ginny, looking at Hermione for some help. Hermione put her book down with an air of inevitability and shrugged.

Lavender nodded. "Don't feel bad about it Ginny. Seamus and Parvati told me about finding you crying in the loo because Harry left you alone in the pub."

Shocked, Hermione said, "What are you two on about? Harry wouldn't do any such thing." Looking prim in her Muggle flannel pajamas, she sat up and tucked her feet underneath her.

But Lavender continued as though she hadn't heard Hermione. She patted Ginny's arm and said, "Don't worry. We've all had something like that happen."

Cutting off Ginny's protest by holding up her hand, Parvati said, "Seamus was on his way to the gents. He said it sounded like a banshee. And I was there…you were the only other person in the loo." She and Lavender nodded in unison. Then Lavender noticed her reflection in the mirror and began to fuss with her own hair.

They'd never believe her if she told them that the truth was they'd heard an insane ghost wailing so instead of arguing, Ginny tried a different tactic. Shrugging, she said with a bright smile, "So this weekend can only get better."

"You're not planning on making the same mistakes all over again!" Parvati sounded appalled.

"She's right. You need help, Ginny. And we're the ones to do it." Lavender said, completely abandoning her mirror.

Smirking, Ginny said, "If you're talking about a makeover, no thanks. I've seen Neville's hair." She burst out laughing, but she was the only one. She looked at Hermione pleadingly, and said, "It's late. We can't keep Hermione awake. She needs her sleep."

Hermione was no help. She waved her hand as though she was batting something away. "I've been sleeping for weeks. Besides…I'm sure it will be fun, Ginny. No one knows more about clothes and hair than Lavender and Parvati. And I'm sure Harry will appreciate it." Ginny thought she detected a small smirk on her friend's face before it disappeared behind a book.

Hands on her hips, Ginny answered, "And I'm sure Harry wouldn't even notice…in fact, the first time he kissed me I was covered in mud. Maybe he prefers a casual look." She laughed, thinking her mud story would give the girls a clue.

Lavender shook her head and looked at Ginny critically, moving over to stand directly in front of the younger girl. Parvati joined Lavender with her arms folded in front of her. She tilted her head and tapped her chin as if she was lost in deep thought. Ginny self-consciously stepped backward, away from their scrutiny. She looked toward Hermione, but her friend's face was still hidden behind a book.

Adopting a serious look, Parvati spoke as though she was trying to break some difficult news. "It's worse than I thought. That mud story sounds…very sweet, but you've been going out for a while. Now you need to give it a little effort…to keep his interest." She looked really sympathetic. "You do like kissing him?" She threw the last question in as if she suddenly had some doubts.

Lavender nodded at Parvati's wise words. "If you don't make the effort, someone else will. I guarantee there're plenty of girls who'd like to find out whether or not they like kissing Harry."

This pronouncement struck a chord with Ginny. She knew that, although it was common knowledge that Harry and she were going out, 'Professor Potter' still received a fair amount of female attention. Of course, Harry never appeared to notice and mostly it was the younger girls -- but still, it was food for thought.

Seeing that Ginny was weakening, Parvati said in a delighted voice. "Great! We'll start with your clothes. What are you planning to wear?"

Lavender shook her head. "No…her clothes won't matter if she keeps wearing her hair pulled back in that ponytail thing. What she needs is a change — something to make him take some notice. Your hair is your best feature." As Lavender spoke she took the liberty of removing the band holding Ginny's hair back.

She kept talking, but Ginny tuned her out. Without listening to their conversation, she let them try several glamour charms on her hair. She watched Hermione close her book with a self-satisfied grin. Deciding that her friend had set her up, Ginny asked innocently, "What about Hermione? She's worn her hair the same way for years." Seeing the panicked look on Hermione's face, Ginny persisted. "Oh, I insist…you work on Hermione's hair for a while and I'll get us some snacks."

"Would you? We're all a little thirsty." Parvati had already begun to remove Hermione's braid.

Lavender looked Hermione up and down, appraisingly. "We all saw how devoted Ron was these last few weeks. Don't you think you owe him a little surprise in return? Something of a reward?" She nodded knowingly.

Ginny left quickly as the glamour girls converged on Hermione. But true to her word, she returned with an armload of snacks procured from the kitchen and spent an intensive late night listening to Parvati's advice on clothes and Lavender's slightly deranged views on how to keep a man interested. Even Hermione had fun after her lengthy hospital stay. It was good to see her relax a little. Ron wouldn't know what hit him the next time they were alone.

While the girls had their fun, the sixth year boys were awake late too. After Harry took his shower, he walked into the dorm to find Neville and Seamus in a contest to see how many Bertie Botts Beans they could balance on their heads without using magic. Ron and Dean were placing the beans. Harry's entrance caused Neville to shake his head, sending the sweets scattering.

"Ah…you were winning!" Ron groaned. He handed Dean a Sickle. "Best two out of three?" he asked hopefully.

"No way! I know how to quit while I'm ahead." Dean put the money on his nightstand. "Besides, Neville was winning." He cracked a broad grin as Seamus punched him in the arm.

"Longbottom's just got a bigger head than me," Seamus complained. "Let me take you on, Ron. Your head looks a little…pointy."

"I do not have a pointed head," Ron protested.

"Fine, prove it then."

Before their ridiculous argument could go any further, Ron said, "We should all get some sleep…besides, I've been waiting to talk to Harry…about…you know."

This speech was greeted by four looks of confusion. No one knew what Ron was talking about. Ignoring them, Ron pulled Harry by the arm over to his bed and said quietly, "I still don't know what I'm going to do about tomorrow."

A look of recognition crossed Harry's face. "Oh…you mean…" Ron nodded. "I picked this up from Greenhouse Twelve this afternoon." He held up a rather sad looking potted plant with dark brown leaves. "Luna helped me graft the Blabber Blossom onto the original stem of an everlasting rose brush. Then we were working on charming it to speak to Hermione in my voice."

"Does it say anything?" Harry asked, looking at the drooping brown plant doubtfully.

Ron shook his head.

Neville spoke up. "Luna tried to keep the charms fresh while Ron was busy in the infirmary, but…."

"What about all those other plants in Greenhouse Twelve? The place was full of…interesting plants when I was there. Crabbe and Goyle didn't smash them all." Harry had helped Luna put the place back to rights. Madame Sprout mainly used the area for storage. Hogwarts students put it to many other uses, especially at night, but Luna Lovegood used it to store several of her 'experimental' Charms projects.

Seamus broke into their conversation, "Better get rid of it, Weasley. From the look of it, Crabbe and Goyle may have cursed it."

Everyone laughed at the thought of the Slytherin goons placing a curse on anything.

"Where did you get those?" Harry asked, pointing to the enchanted boxer shorts Seamus was holding in his hand.

"Lavender bought them for Valentine's. She wants me to wear them tomorrow." Seamus blushed. The shorts had little bunnies holding hearts and chasing, but never catching, other bunnies.

Dean was getting under his covers, wearing a manly gray tee shirt and sweat pants. Nodding sympathetically at Seamus, he said, "She's making you wear bunnies…that's harsh."

With a wide smile, Seamus said, "I'm sure she'll make it worth my time."

Everyone laughed at his comment, except Ron who just looked miserable. For weeks he'd been so absorbed in helping Hermione, and trying to find her attacker that he'd forgotten everything else. On top of that, he'd never had to think of anything romantic before.

Ron had tried asking Ginny for advice, but she'd outright refused. His owl to Fred and George had brought some rather questionable chewy candies in reply. Only Harry had promised to help.

Harry did seem to be trying. Sounding a little unsure, he suggested, "I'm sure Luna would let you give one of the…pretty plants to Hermione. You can ask her tomorrow at breakfast."

Shaking his head, Ron said, "I couldn't ask Luna for any more help."

So Harry tried a different approach. "Don't worry so much. Hermione doesn't know a thing about the talking plant you tried to charm. Just make her a card or something. And take her out somewhere nice in Hogsmeade."

Harry's suggestion sounded so reasonable. And, other than himself, who knew Hermione better than Harry? "Fine…if you're sure."

Neville spoke up as he got under his covers. "Really, Ron, you don't have any worries. At least you have a girlfriend."

"Still haven't asked Luna out…eh, Neville?" Seamus asked, turning off his light.

Harry didn't hear Neville's answer as Ron put his face in his hands and said, "How do I make a card? I can't just use parchment. Am I supposed to write a stupid poem or something?" Seeing that his roommates didn't share his panic, Ron asked Seamus, "What are you doing for Lavender?"

"Nothing…I mean nothing that difficult. I bought her some candy. Harry gave me the idea." Seamus held up a box of chocolates from Honeydukes.

Ron looked at his friend accusingly. Putting both hands in the air, Harry said, "I was just buying some sugar quills for your sister, Ron. They weren't even for Valentine's Day." He rummaged around in his messy trunk for a minute, muttering, and pulled out a package wrapped with a big red bow. "I'm giving her a picture of everyone playing in the snow at the Burrow."

"I can't believe you, Harry." Ron folded his arms over his chest.

Harry's face fell. He was trying to keep his promise and help Ron. Rummaging through his trunk muttering again, Harry fished out the unopened box of sugar quills. "Why don't you give Hermione these? Or do you have some Chocolate Frogs left?"

Ron took the box of candy and said, "You know the Frogs are all gone. Besides, Hermione would see right through them. She knows you bought those for me." Harry handed him the rest of the red ribbon he used to wrap Ginny's present.

As Ron took the ribbon and disappeared behind the closed curtains around his bed, Harry looked around the room at his fellow Gryffindors. Dean was in bed with his charmed Muggle headphones in his ears, listening to Muggle music with his eyes closed. Seamus was hugging his pillow tightly, which was usually a prelude to sleep. Neville was reading in his bed, and shaking his head as though he was talking to himself. Except for maybe Seamus, none of them appeared to have a clue.

With a sigh, Harry climbed into bed, and closed his eyes. Lazily using his wand to close his own curtains, and shut off the light. If nothing else, he supposed the troops deserved a good night's rest before going into battle.

The following morning, Albus Dumbledore watched the sun come up over the lake while he stood at his window, drinking his morning tea. He smiled when he noticed the familiar sight of a bird circling high above Harry, then dropping down to ground level, flying low beside him as he took his morning run. He should have realized weeks ago that only a phoenix would follow Harry so vigilantly.

He'd been in his nineties when Fawkes appeared, not long before he fought Grindelwald. Sometimes Harry still seemed so young…but he couldn't put off talking to him much longer. It had to be soon. But this morning, he simply watched as the phoenix disappeared and Harry walked toward the castle.

After hurrying up to his dormitory for a quick shower, Harry carefully made his way through the masses of discarded clothes around Neville's bed. He marveled that his friend could find anything. Leaning against his own trunk, he pulled on fresh trousers. "What is all this, Neville?"

"I can't decide what jumper to wear today."

"Er…have you forgotten that we all wear uniforms?" Ron asked, pulling on his own well-worn jumper.

"I…I'm going to ask Luna to go out with me at breakfast. I want to look my best. Besides…it's the weekend."

"It'll be all right. You'll do fine," Ron said, using the same speech to reassure Neville that he'd been trying on himself.

At least, Harry thought that's how it sounded. "Have you decided where you'll go today, Ron?"

"I'm going to ask her at breakfast…just like Neville." Ron looked worried as it sunk in that he and Neville had the same plan.

Harry couldn't believe it. "Are you saying you haven't even asked her to go to Hogsmeade with you?" He didn't want to say it out loud, but Ron could be in real trouble here. Hermione wouldn't like being taken for granted.

Ron looked uncomfortable. "I'm waiting for the right moment to bring it up. She's only just out of the infirmary. I don't want to rush her. You'll notice that I don't ask what you plan to do with my sister today." He turned his back to Harry.

Putting a hand on Ron's shoulder, Harry steered him towards out to the common room. Neville trailed along behind, looking ruefully at the cuff of his jumper. "Rush her? Valentine's Day was yesterday," Harry said. "We're only pretending it's today because we're trapped at boarding school and it's our one free day of the month." Harry shook his head. Softening his tone, he said, "You'll do just fine, Ron. It's a sure thing. You've been going out since last summer…."

As Neville, Ron and Harry headed down the stairs, they found Ginny, sitting in the common room with Parvati and Lavender. The disgusted look on Ginny's face made Harry wonder what the older girls had been doing.

Harry was right. Parvati and Lavender had been up to something. Ginny had been sitting by the cold hearth in the common room, waiting for Harry and Ron to come downstairs. She'd thought vaguely about starting a fire to warm the room because her hair was wet. She hadn't done a good job performing a Drying Charm on her hair after her morning shower. Instead she'd opted for closing her eyes for a few more minutes. Blissfully falling back asleep, she hadn't noticed Parvati and Lavender join her.

Parvati's voice dripped with sympathy. "Good idea, Ginny, getting up early to spend time with your boyfriend. That's the way to get over this little — bump in the road." Nothing Ginny could say would convince her that she and Harry weren't having trouble.

Ginny opened one eye. Staying up late to hear all the good gossip and listen to the older girls' advice on everything from clothes and makeup to "giving your man what he needs" was one thing, waking up early to it was another. She groaned and said, "I…I'm sleeping right now." Ginny hoped that keeping her eyes shut tight would make them leave.

Perhaps speaking gave her away. Lavender giggled. "We know you're awake. Now sit up and let me fix your hair. The boys will be here any minute."

Ginny sat up, a little grumpily, and let Lavender finish drying her hair, parting it on the side, before curling the ends slightly. Ginny had to smile, watching the older girl concentrate. Lavender always looked so perfect, even in the school uniforms, and she was only trying to be nice. "You're frightfully good at this, Lavender. Thanks."

"You can thank me later…after you get what you want. Purse your lips." Lavender knew a lot of glamour charms, too.

Parvati warned, "Careful…I'm sure Harry prefers the natural look, or he wouldn't have fallen for Ginny in the first place."

"Thanks…I think," Ginny said. She'd heard plenty of comments like that last night or she might have been more offended. The older girls meant well with their blunt comments and Ginny had privately begun to think of them as the glamour police. Though it had been fun watching them work on Hermione. And even if they used the same hair and glamour charms that they used on Neville, she knew Harry wouldn't mind. Remembering last summer when Fred turned her hair blue and she'd knocked Harry down, Ginny smiled.

Parvati said, "That's right, smile…no one wants a high maintenance girlfriend."

Ginny was spared further comments by the entrance of the boys. Noticing the expression on Ginny's face as he greeted her, Harry said, "If you're waiting for Dean and Seamus, they're still sleeping."

Giggling in unison, Lavender and Parvati streaked up the stairs past the others. "Now we know how to get rid of them," Ron said, stomping down the rest of the stairs.

"You go on ahead, Ron," Harry said, staring at Ginny intently. "We'll be along in a minute."

Giving them an exasperated look, Ron left with Neville. Relieved that his friend didn't protest further, Harry smiled at her. She looked positively glowing despite the fact that her eyes were only half open. "You look really nice this morning," he began, only to be interrupted by a troop of first year boys stomping down the stairs and shouting. "Sometimes I wish we had somewhere where we could truly be alone for a while. I doubt we'll have a moment all day. Anyway, Happy Valentine's." Without any further ceremony Harry pulled a package with a big red bow out of his pocket.

Ginny gave him a dreamy smile and unwrapped the photograph. She reached up and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks, Harry. I've got something for you, too, but it's upstairs."

A group of second year girls passed by them, giggling madly. One of the bolder girls said, "Good morning, Professor."

Embarrassed, Harry ignored them and said, "You can give it to me later…I just didn't want to wait. But why don't you get your cloak so we can leave right after breakfast…And don't forget your Portkey."

Ginny hurriedly retrieved his gift and the other items from upstairs. Her gift was also a photo of just the two of them, looking relaxed after a Quidditch practice. Colin must have taken it sometime when neither of them noticed him. In fact, the two in the photo didn't seem to notice anything but each other. He put his arm around her waist and said, "I guess we think a lot alike sometimes." He kissed her cheek and thanked her.

When they finally reached breakfast, the Great Hall was buzzing. People were pointing to the Hufflepuff table where several young girls with rainbow colored hair were glaring at a group of Slytherins.

As Ginny passed near the Slytherin table, one of them gave her a double thumbs up which she returned with a grin. "Do I want to know why?" Harry asked.

"Just passing the prank torch on to the next generation." Ginny smiled.

"And the torch is going to the Slytherin second years because?" Harry waited for her answer expectantly.

With an air of patience, Ginny answered, "They asked." Harry still looked confused so she continued. "They wanted to get the attention of a few of the Hufflepuff girls in their year. I thought it was a very good use of pranking power…not too mean…ever since we used the Repel Gel, I've felt it was time to change."

They looked at the far end of the Slytherin table where Draco Malfoy was eating his breakfast alone and reading. His arrogant smirk seemed to have been replaced with a more sinister scowl, but he was still perfectly coifed and immaculately dressed. Harry said, "Maybe it's not the Gel. Malfoy has a way of alienating people. Don't forget he's our main suspect for what happened to Hermione. According to Sophie, he's made some rather incriminating statements in their common room."

"I know…but now the Gel thing just seems mean. Pranks should be fun. I never meant for it to go this far." Ginny seemed sincerely sorry.

Harry smiled at her as they took seats near Ron. "So you're atoning for your pranks by arming the younger Slytherins with prank ammunition." He poured pumpkin juice for both of them.

"Of the highest quality. Besides, Fred and George pay me to test out their products and advertise here at Hogwarts. It's a rough job…but someone has to do it." She leaned her head toward Hermione and whispered, "Ron's not allowed."

Ron was reading the Daily Prophet with interest. Looking over at her brother, Ginny asked, "What is it?"

"Here…read it for yourself," said Hermione, handing over her copy of the newspaper. The banner headline read, "Death Eaters Routed! You-Know-Who on the Run!" Quoting an anonymous source at the Ministry of Magic, the article outlined the story of the recent capture of a Death Eater stronghold in the mountains of Wales. Apparently, Ministry Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt was the hero of the day.

"Way to go, Kingsley! Don't you think, Harry?" Ron said enthusiastically. "And that's not all." He tapped the article at the bottom of the page.

"Azkaban Raid Comes Up Empty!" The article explained that a Death Eater raid on the wizarding prison was thwarted when the attackers discovered the cells of the prison were empty. Ministry officials explained that they had expected an attack for some time. They took the precaution of detaining the prisoners at an undisclosed location.

One raid successful, the other thwarted, and both good news for the fight against Death Eaters. Harry smiled and said, "That must be why the front door was unlocked this morning. Filch'll be glad he doesn't have to let me in anymore."

"They're only thinking of our safety," Hermione said, looking at them with disdain. "I, for one, am glad that someone is."

"Quite right, Hermione. That's very sensible of you," said Ernie MacMillan with a sniff. He'd come to the Gryffindor table hoping to interest Harry in his plans for capturing Green Wood Fairies for a Magical Creatures project.

Harry looked serious for a moment. "Don't you see? They've been locking us inside the castle just as much as they've been locking out the Death Eaters. This place has been like a prison, a really nice prison, but still… we haven't really been free to come and go."

Looking around at the puzzled looks on everyone's face, Harry wondered if maybe he was just sensitive about this issue. He'd grown up with Uncle Vernon locking him in — even putting bars on his windows — while they just thought locks were good for keeping burglars away. Seeing that none of them understood, he focused his efforts on his plate of eggs, tomatoes and bacon.

Ernie was about to speak, when Ginny touched Harry's arm, and showed him something small that Luna had just handed to her. It looked like a clunky silver ring with tiny markings. The two of them put their heads together to examine what looked like runes. Luna was standing behind them, staring up at the enchanted ceiling like a statue.

His face bright red, Neville stood up and walked toward Luna. Unfortunately, he was on the wrong side of the long table. Clearing his throat, he said, "Er…what do you have there?"

"Oh…it's a serenity ring that my father sent. It was my Mum's. The runes are Icelandic. Do you want to take a look?"

"No…yes…um." Clearly, words were failing Neville. "What I mean is…you could show it to me later…if you…what are you doing today?"

Luna didn't seem fazed by this speech. Looking directly at him for the first time, she said, "I'll be in the Greenhouse. Would you like to help?"

Letting out a sigh of relief, Neville nodded. "That would be nice." The thought of spending the day helping Luna with her charmed plants, an arena where Neville was always in command, filled him with a sense of accomplishment. It may not be the most romantic choice, or even the best way to let her know how he felt about her, but at least they'd spend the day alone together doing something that wouldn't make him feel like a complete fool.

Ron looked desolate. His day with Hermione wasn't so easily settled. He felt like a prize idiot. She deserved a really good Valentine's Day after all she'd been through. But she was so smart, she'd see right through an invitation to Hogsmeade and where would they go…Madame Puddifoot's? She might laugh in his face. And he couldn't just tag along with his sister and Harry, because those two made it clear they wanted to be alone.

Ginny and Harry were sitting side by side, their heads almost touching as they examined Luna's small ring. Ginny was giggling, and Harry was whispering so softly that no one else could hear. When those two were together sometimes, it was like the rest of the world didn't exist.

Ron wondered if he should insist they sit apart — at least for meals. Poor Ernie MacMillan was waiting so politely after all. Remembering that he had problems of his own, he said to Hermione, "So…what shall we do for Valentines?"

"I don't know, Ron. Hire dwarves to sing stupid poems to each other? I, for one, have too much studying to catch up on to worry about something so…superficial."

"Well said, Hermione," Ernie said.

Ernie might believe that Hermione had actually meant what she said, but Ron knew her better. She may want the world to think she was a practical person, but Ron knew she wanted a little romance just like everyone else. It gave him an idea. Actually, he'd had the idea from Harry weeks before, but he hadn't taken it seriously then. Aloud he said, "All right, then. We'll study all day if you like. Or…." The rest of what Ron had to say was whispered in her ear and brought a soft smile to her face.

If Hermione was disappointed, she didn't show it. Instead, she stood up and said, "We'll see all of you later. Have a great time in Hogsmeade." She smiled brightly and walked away.

Ron took one last bite of his eggs and grabbed some toast. With a smug grin, he said, "That's me sorted then." He hurried to catch up with Hermione.

Lavender Brown tapped Harry on the shoulder and asked, "Couldn't we turn the Room of Requirement into a sort of Madame Puddifoot's tonight, Harry? I mean, we have to be back from Hogsmeade before teatime."

"Surely not!" exclaimed Ernie. He said it as though he expected everyone to agree with him, but he didn't seem to notice that no one did.

"I…I don't have any objection, Lavender. Go ahead and have fun. Maybe you can get one of the house elves to help you." Harry started to turn back to Ginny, but Ernie cleared his throat and began his appeal for help gathering the fairies.

Parvati was already seated next to Dean and Seamus who both seemed to be thoroughly enjoying their food. Lavender was about to join them when a Hufflepuff seventh year walked up to her and pulled a huge bouquet of roses out of his sleeve. Harry choked a little at the cliched magical trick, but Seamus looked stricken.

The tall blond boy with the flowers was focused on Lavender, oblivious to anyone else's reaction. His head bowed shyly, he said, "I know you're spending today with your friends, but I wanted to thank you…for the other day. Maybe we can go to Hogsmeade together some other time."

Despite the quiet, shy tone he used, the whole Gryffindor table could hear him -- mostly because they were straining to hear. Lavender's answer was even quieter as she accepted the roses. Avoiding everyone's eyes, she sat down next to Seamus.

Harry never found out what happened next because Professor Dumbledore motioned to him to come to the head table. He dropped his napkin quickly and hurried over, worried that he was going to be told that — for security reasons — he'd have to stay in the castle today.

He was almost correct. The Headmaster said, "Use every caution as you go about in the village today. And return to the castle quickly if anything doesn't seem right to you. While we haven't received intelligence of any specific threats, the other side knows you might be on this school outing. A general exercise of watchfulness is of the greatest importance."

Looking over at Moody with a smile, Harry said, "So…constant vigilance!" Of course, he readily agreed. Harry was so happy to be leaving the castle and spending the day alone with Ginny, he didn't even chafe at the warning.

The day was cold and clear like the night before so they decided to take their time as they walked the short distance to Hogsmeade. Since Ginny was more awake after breakfast, she was entertaining Harry with all the gossip she'd learned from the older girls the evening before.

The only Slytherins who passed them on the road were Sophie and Blaise who greeted them cheerfully. Harry'd been meaning to ask them if they ever found out why Crabbe and Goyle were in the greenhouse that day, but now didn't seem the time. Maybe it was the absence of the more irritating Slytherins, but the day seemed to be going so pleasantly, Harry didn't want to spoil things.

Since Harry had promised romance instead of adventure for this trip, he let Ginny choose their agenda. She opted for shopping although, like her brother, she was reluctant to allow Harry to spend money on her. They had a nice time anyway. She had plenty of spending money thanks to her work for Fred and George. Honeydukes, or Harry's alibi, as Ginny had begun to call it, was their last stop before lunch. Here she did break down and let Harry buy her a box of sugar quills.

Then they headed off to Henri's for lunch. Ginny chose a table in a dark corner so they'd have a little privacy. Although the place was full of mostly Hogwarts students — Zach Smith greeted them at the door — at least they didn't have to worry about running into Ron.

Henri's was a normal looking English pub with a wide hearth and dark beamed ceilings. The menu was mostly standard pub fare, but boasted a large dessert selection featuring French pastries. Harry ordered a Ploughman's sandwich and Ginny asked for the chicken and ham pie. They both ordered Chocolate Souffle for dessert. The meal was very relaxed. Everything about the day seemed free and easy, none of the pressures of their last Hogsmeade trip.

"Did I tell you Mum thinks Bill's going to marry Fleur?" Ginny asked, before devouring a delicious mouthful of whipped cream and chocolate.

Harry had already finished his and was watching her eat with interest. "It's not really a surprise, is it? You saw how they were at Christmas." He licked his lips unconsciously.

She stopped eating and looked at Harry speculatively. "Would you like a bite?" she asked, amused at his interest in her dessert.

"Well…if you wouldn't mind…just a small one." He took a small taste, then he offered to get their cloaks. Ginny waited at the table while Harry rescued their cloaks from the coat tree by the door.

The hearth flared bright green, repeatedly, as though several people were rapidly entering the crowded pub through the floo connection. The screams of several patrons alerted Harry to just who had arrived. By the time he turned around, at least ten Death Eaters were busy casting stunning spells indiscriminately. He saw Ernie MacMillan putting up a good fight near the bar. Ginny's wand was drawn.

"That's her! The red headed one!" shouted one of the Death Eaters, sounding surprisingly young.

"Get Potter first!" shouted a tall man with a deeper voice.

Casting spells with both his wand and his free hand, Harry tried to cross the room to get to Ginny. "Use your Portkey!" he shouted, hoping she would get the message over the din created by the chaotic fighting. She shook her head and cast a Bat-Bogey Hex at one of the masked men.

If she wouldn't Portkey away, Harry would have to Apparate her to safety and return to finish this fight. There were too many people there for the freezing charm to do much good so he cast the crippling _Ossify!_ hex he'd been practicing on his training dummies. Harry's spell took two of the Death Eaters out of the fight.

Several more Death Eaters entered through the fireplace. One of them shouted, "I'll get him!" Harry threw another _Ossify! _hex at this newcomer. Then in a flash of fire, he found himself in a familiar woodland clearing.

Panicking, he shouted, "NO!" Seeing Aurora tilt her head questioningly, he said, "Ginny's still there." Then he Apparated back to the fight.

Harry had only been gone for a minute but things had changed dramatically. As he entered the pub, he could see it was chaos now. The front and back doors stood wide open. Some students had simply run away, but many were sprawled out -- injured. Tables were overturned so food and drink was everywhere. Ernie MacMillan was stretched across the bar, out like a light. The men Harry had hexed still lay lifeless and bone-like. Several more Death Eaters were unconscious on the floor. One of the black robed figures was sitting on the ground with slimy bats still circling his head.

Ginny was still fighting, holding her own against the last three masked men, despite the fact that her robes were torn and she seemed to be standing on one foot. A white light shone from her as the torque around her neck provided some protection deflecting spells. But she was surrounded and they were closing in on her. The hearth was flaring green again as Death Eater reinforcements entered the room.

As if in slow motion, Harry saw a jet of purple light come out the end of a tall Death Eater's wand and stream toward Ginny. Her attention was drawn to the other two so she couldn't even see it coming. Harry leapt through the air in front of her, shooting with both his wand and his hand again. He blocked most of the cutting hex and blasted the Death Eater off his feet. Rolling as he hit the ground, he kept shooting as he righted himself, knocking out the last two.

"Ginny! We need to get out of here!" Harry could see more black robed, masked figures advancing on them from the fireplace. Aurors burst through the doorway and began to engage the Death Eaters in a firefight. Hexes were flying wildly around the room.

Ginny tried to put weight on her foot and winced in pain. Without a word, Harry lifted her into his arms and called out to Aurora who thankfully did appear. In a flash both Ginny and Harry were safely spirited away.

Thanking his phoenix, Harry set Ginny down in the cool grass. She was out of breath. "Thanks…for coming back," she said, her voice trembling. Sitting on the ground beside her, Harry pulled her close and held her until she stopped shaking. Then he gently examined her injuries. "This looks pretty bad, Ginny. We should get you to Madame Pomfrey and then I'll get back to the pub."

Grabbing his arm, Ginny said, "Don't go back…the Aurors were there…besides, you're their real target. Without you, the Death Eaters will just leave." Seeing that this last comment convinced him, Ginny shifted. The slight move made her wince in pain.

Casting a Pain Relief Charm on her foot that he knew wasn't nearly good enough, Harry asked, "Where's your Portkey?"

She shook her head. "It's in my cloak pocket…back at the pub…sorry."

Harry answered quietly, "You have nothing to be sorry for. You were wonderful back there." He gently pulled the fabric out of the wound on her shoulder to take a closer look. A cutting hex had torn her robes and the soft, clingy jumper she was wearing, but Harry healed the gash on her skin easily. It wasn't very deep.

"So were you." Ginny leaned against him, feeling secure at last.

"We're safe. Nothing can hurt us here." Harry rubbed circles on her back soothingly. They stayed like that for a while. Eventually ending up stretched out in the thick grass, using Harry's robe as a pillow. High above them, from the top of a nearby tree came the hauntingly beautiful sound of phoenix song, making it all seem just perfect. The sun disappeared behind the trees long before sunset. But in the east, the nearly full moon rose in the late afternoon sky. It came up pale blue, almost blending in with the fading sky and enlarged through some trick of the light. It felt like they'd stepped out of time or moved to another dimension. But they both knew it wasn't true.

When the moon moved on and hung bright against a darkening sky, Ginny broke the silence. "What is this place?" she asked.

Harry looked thoughtful. "I don't know really. But we're safe…I'm sure of it." He'd never taken the time to look around much, but they must be far from Hogwarts, maybe even far from Scotland. Wherever they were, it was the middle of summer.

Sitting up and brushing grass of her jumper, she said, "We should get back. Everyone will be worried."

"Of course…" Harry answered although he didn't move a muscle.

"Will she return us to Hogwarts if we ask?" Ginny asked, gesturing toward Aurora's treetop nest.

"You know…I've never asked her…but I suppose she would." Harry smiled at Ginny apologetically as he stood up and offered her his hand. "I'm sorry about Valentine's Day…it isn't what I planned for you. Henri's was supposed to be romantic, not life threatening."

She let Harry pull her to her feet, still favoring her injured ankle. He pulled her up into his arms and grinned. Ginny laughed cheerfully, "I think we did all right considering. You said you wanted time alone and I said I wanted to be swept off my feet."

Keeping his eyes locked on Ginny's face, he called politely, "Aurora, will you please take us back to school?" Ginny leaned against his shoulder. The phoenix flew excitedly toward them. He kissed the top of Ginny's head and grabbed Aurora's golden tail feathers.

No one noticed Harry and Ginny's arrival in the Hogwarts infirmary. Too much was happening. Madame Pomfrey hurried past them, carrying an armload of blankets. She called over her shoulder for them to take a seat and wait so they did.

Harry counted fifteen occupied beds from their seats near the door. Madame Pomfrey and her assistant were rushed off their feet. The doors swung open and several witches and wizards strode in purposefully. From their lime green uniforms, Harry reckoned that they were from St. Mungo's.

Looking really tired, Ginny leaned on his shoulder. He squeezed her hand. At least it was just her ankle and she'd already had a Pain Relief Charm. Harry put his head down lightly on the top of hers and closed his eyes. It wouldn't matter if he rested for just a bit.

Professor Dumbledore woke Harry up some time later. Moody and Remus were standing behind him looking amused. "So glad we could find you, Harry. Now we can call off the search."

"Sir…Ginny's ankle is hurt." Harry looked up at the adults, wondering just what was so amusing about his girlfriend being hurt.

Remus must have sensed his confusion because he said, "We've been turning Hogsmeade inside out looking for some sign of you, Harry. An eyewitness in the pub said you and Ginny just disappeared. We didn't know if you'd been kidnapped or…you know…birdnapped. We did find these." He held out Ginny and Harry's cloaks and packages.

"Thanks. We came straight here because of her ankle. I put a Pain Relief Charm on it, but it looks pretty bad." Harry looked at Ginny, still leaning peacefully on his shoulder.

Mrs. Weasley rushed through the door and looked very relieved when she spotted the two of them. "There you are! Such a scare…" She soon enveloped both Ginny and Harry in a big motherly hug. The parents of other students were entering the room.

Leaving Mrs. Weasley still hugging Ginny, Harry stepped away from them. He leaned close to Professor Dumbledore and asked in a whisper, "Is everyone accounted for?" He was terribly worried that somebody hadn't made it back. In the chaos of the pub, it was difficult to tell.

Dumbledore answered with a simple, "Yes." Then paused with a solemn look on his face. "I wonder if you could come with us? We'd like your help with something."

Harry noticed Remus had the same serious expression. Quickly saying goodbye to Ginny and Mrs. Weasley, he followed Dumbledore and Remus into the corridor.

The Headmaster said, "We need your help with one of the Death Eaters that was taken into custody. He was found unconscious in the pub, still confined within your Ossification Hex. He's in the dungeon with Professor Snape at the moment."

His forehead knitting in confusion, Harry asked, "Those were Ministry Aurors not Order members. How did you convince them to let you bring someone here? In fact why bring a Death Eater to Hogwarts at all?"

Remus answered, "This one's rather a special case." The prisoner's identity dawned on Harry before Remus finished explaining. "It's Draco Malfoy." 

To Be Continued…

A/N: Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

Nightwing509: Thanks for saying that. The phoenix could tell Harry needed rescuing. Thanks for reviewing!

Harry/Ginnyfan4ever: Thanks for your review! Nixy is such a cute name for phoenix. Harry needed an escape from Snape. And I agree that Snape is a hypocrite. But it makes him fun to write about.

Deathzealot: In this chapter, Harry took an extremely literal interpretation of the words, "a girl likes to be swept off her feet." But he'll have more chances to be alone with Ginny in upcoming chapters. Thanks for reviewing!

sarah: You do have good timing. I love it when people update quickly, too. Thanks for your reviews and your nice comments!

Retrieve the Melon: I'm glad you feel that way because it is fun to respond. Thanks for writing!

Inappropriate Goat: The cliffhanger in this chapter was deliberate. Sorry. Next chapter Snape shows just how difficult it is for him to adjust his attitude. Thanks for writing a review!

MsMiss Prongs: Good to hear from you. Thanks for reviewing!

shotgunn: Thanks for saying that! I'm glad you like the story so far. Thanks for reviewing!

Lady of the Dragons2: Thanks for writing! I really appreciate reviews so I enjoy responding to them individually. Thanks for all your nice comments about Harry's phoenix. I hope she makes a fun addition to the story.

GhostMagic19: Harry's taking some time getting used to having a phoenix. I agree that Dumbledore and Harry talking things over is long overdue. The next chapter, which is already partially done, will bring the two of them together some. Thanks for reviewing!

athenakitty: The phoenix does belong to Harry although he didn't quite see it that way in the beginning. Harry can't get more water right now because of the Death Eaters. Hermione's cured. The phoenix is named Aurora. I'll assume you meant phoenix babies…maybe in the epilogue. Thanks!

Jaquelyne: Lovely to hear from you again. I'm really pleased that you're still reading my story. Thanks for saying you like Harry's new phoenix and for writing a review!

C.Rose: Your comments were exactly right. I hope I figured Dumbledore's age properly. J.K.R. said somewhere that he's about 150 and someplace else that Grindelwald was supposed to be around Hitler's time. I hope to post the next chapter faster now that I'm away from the distractions of summer. Thanks for reviewing!

HBP15: Next chapter Crabbe and Goyle's motives will be revealed. Thanks for writing a review!

ezekial: Thanks for your nice comments about my story. I'm finding it easier to create a balance between adventure and romance in these later chapters. Thanks for writing a review!

Elementation: Thanks for saying that. I'm glad you like the story so far. Thanks for reviewing!

never: You are 100% right! All Harry had to do was ask. It just didn't occur to him to start ordering the phoenix around the moment they met. I purposely had him only think of asking it for help with Hermione's problem. He's catching on now though. Thanks for reviewing!

Lion of Gryffindor: Thanks for saying that. Snape is fun to write about because he is such a wonderfully complex git. Thanks for writing!

Ginevra Potter: Thanks for your nice comments and for wishing me luck. I need luck. Doesn't everybody? Thanks for writing!

GryffRavHeffSlythendor: Hope you like the phoenix' name. Thanks for reviewing!

Illuvatar: Thanks! 

**corwin:** lol I can see why you thought I meant you. Mobilicorpus is the spell to float people along that they used at the end of Prisoner of Azkaban. Thanks for pointing that out. Thanks for writing a review!

master ferret: Thanks for reviewing! The phoenix will have a more important role later as will Draco.

Silly Gillie: It does seem like Fawkes and "girl" should meet. But for now the phoenix' storyline is focusing on Harry and she getting more in sync. Thanks for your nice comments. I agree with you about Snape. I appreciate your reviewing!

bogus 7: Sorry about that. Thanks for reviewing!

Caity: Thanks for your nice comments. The story has a ways to go before it's finished. Thanks for writing!

Crash3350: Thanks for reviewing! And thanks for recommending your story!

SilverWarrior: I think you're right. If they had another dance, Harry'd want to learn how dance properly for Ginny's sake. Thanks for writing!

Lady of Masbolle: Thanks for saying that. Hope you continue to like the story. Thanks for reviewing!

irishchic799: Sorry it took so long to get Harry and Ginny together. And about the luck of the Irish thing -- I hope you know that I meant no offense to the Irish. My father's family is from County Tyrone in Northern Ireland. I think it's cool that you're an Irish dancer. Must be where your pen name comes from, too. Please accept my apology and my thanks for your reviews.

moonrider666: Thanks!

Severus' Wife: Thanks for your kind comments about my story and thank your husband for recommending it. His name's not really Severus, is it? Thanks for reviewing!

rosepetal13: You were right about taking Ginny to a safe place, but I guess it could have been in better circumstances. Thanks for writing a review!

Makaveli3: Thanks for reviewing! It's an interesting theory! And it shows you really have paid attention to details. Rhys will play a part in coming chapters.

LunaLovegood61: Hope you like the name Aurora. I looked up the Latin word for gold which is aureus and thought it sounded close to Aurora which is Latin for dawn. Since she supposedly has more gold feathers than Fawkes does, I thought it fit. Snape has trouble looking beyond his prejudices. Thanks for writing!

Twilight66: Thanks for saying you like the mix of romance and adventure and thanks for reviewing!

**MalusMagus:** Thanks for your comments! I'm glad you like it so far.Thanks for reviewing!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	27. An Easy Choice

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks to everybody who reviewed! I love reading them. They really helped me regain my focus. Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter.

Sorry for dropping out of sight! Real life's been complicated lately, way too crazy to concentrate on fun stuff like writing. But things have settled down now so…where were we?

Chapter 27  
An Easy Choice

The stone walls of the corridor glistened in the torchlight as Harry followed Dumbledore, Moody, and Remus into the dungeon. The air grew colder as they descended to the deepest part of the castle. The only sound was the faint clumping of Moody's artificial leg. No one spoke although questions were streaming through Harry's mind.

At the end of the corridor, a heavy oak door stood open. Harry could hear voices inside, but he couldn't quite make them out. Then Draco's slow drawl reached his ears. "I'm not scared of you. You're just a traitor…afraid to leave the safety of this school. And do you know how I found out? From that big lump, Goyle."

Harry couldn't understand the response, but it sounded like whoever was speaking was upset. As they drew closer, Draco shouted. "You have no idea what you're talking about! You're no use to anyone. The Dark Lord wants you dead! It's only a matter of time."

Harry arrived at the door just as Professor Snape, red faced, stood in front of Draco and said in a quiet, urgent voice, "I may still be able to help you. But you must cooperate."

Grimacing in pain, Draco answered, "Then take this hex off me and let me go…please. You don't know what he'll do to me…or mother." Draco was propped against a wall. Most of his body remained stiff and bone-colored, only his head and shoulders had returned to normal. The Death Eater mask he'd been wearing in the pub lay on the floor beside him.

Snape didn't have a chance to answer. He moved aside uneasily as Professor Dumbledore walked across the room and took his place directly in front of the slim blond teenager. Despite his age, the Headmaster's presence radiated power. He looked terribly stern as he spoke. "In this castle, you have nothing to fear from Voldemort, Mr. Malfoy. Perhaps you should concern yourself with what the people in this room might do to you. Whatever you hoped to gain from your actions today, you have failed in your purpose."

Draco hit his head against the stone wall behind him and squeezed his eyes shut. Thrashing his head from side to side, he shouted, "Stop! I know you're trying that mind probe thing. The Dark Lord does it, too…urgh…can't you remove this awful hex…it itches like crazy."

Dumbledore, Remus and Snape looked at Harry. Moody kept his eye trained on Draco. He seemed to be scanning the blond boy with his magical eye. After a moment he muttered, "He seems to be clean."

Harry stretched his hand toward Draco, but stopped short when he caught Dumbledore's reproachful look. Instead, he dutifully drew his wand and pointed it at Draco whose eyes were still screwed tightly shut. Under his breath, he cast the counter curse and restored the teenager to normal.

Slumping against the wall, Draco rubbed his limbs for a moment, scratching through his robes at his arms and legs. "Ooooh…that's so much better." He looked through his lashes at everyone and straightened up. In an effort to reestablish his usual composure, he smoothed his robes and casually brushed an imaginary piece of lint off of his sleeve. Trying to avoid eye contact with Professor Dumbledore and still look defiant, Draco lifted his chin and said, "Why am I here? I demand to see my mother. You have no right to keep me in this dingy cellar."

Starting with the calm, patient voice he so often used in his Defense classes, Remus said, "I think we have to seriously question your mother's fitness as a parent if she's allowed you to join a criminal organization at the age of sixteen."

He picked up Draco's Death Eater mask off the floor and looked at it carefully. His voice took on a deeper, angrier timber as he asked, "Did you think this would be enough to hide the fact that you attacked your classmates? Did you expect to come back to Hogwarts and attend classes like nothing happened?"

Harry was shocked to see Professor Snape nod his head in agreement. Snape's voice shook with emotion as he said, "We can still help you if you'll let us, but you must be willing to work with us."

Stepping away from the wall, Draco smoothed his hair back behind his ears. With a disdainful look at Professor Snape, he said, "If you'd really like to help me…I could use some tea and maybe some sandwiches."

Professor Moody let out a rather loud roar. "You're in no position to demand tea! Fifteen of your classmates are in the infirmary as a result of your attack." Grumbling under his breath, he cast a spell forcing Draco into a nearby chair. Conjured ropes bound the teenager so quickly that he had no time to do anything but look surprised.

Stopping any further action from the old Auror by lifting his hand, Professor Dumbledore sat down calmly in the chair next to Draco. He made no move to remove the ropes now pinning the blond boy's arms to his side.

Whether it was the crumpling of his robes or the ropes were too tight, Draco gave a frustrated cry. Without acknowledging Draco's distress, Dumbledore said mildly, "There will be time for tea later. Right now, I have some questions that I would like you to answer carefully."

As Harry sat down across from him, Draco tossed his head back with a derisive sneer and asked, "Does Potter have to be here?"

The bravado behind this statement struck Harry as absurd, but he remained silent. He was furious about the attack, but he knew if he made any kind of angry outburst, the adults would make him leave so he kept quiet, staring at Draco dispassionately.

Dumbledore also appeared unmoved. "As Mr. Potter was one of your apparent targets this afternoon, he may stay. You will explain your actions, Mr. Malfoy. Now…I'm quite sure you weren't in charge. Please tell us what instructions you were given and by whom?"

Refusing to meet the Headmaster's gaze, Draco kept his pale, gray-blue eyes trained on Harry's face instead, and said, "All this fuss because you're worried about losing your golden boy? You can stop worrying…we were told to stun, not kill. If they wanted you dead right now, Potter, you'd be dead. Real smart, walking around Hogsmeade with your girlfriend when you know there's a price on your head."

Since Draco seemed willing to get into a staring contest, Harry wordlessly cast the _Legilimens!_ spell. He knew that it wouldn't matter what they talked about as long as he kept Draco distracted from the spell. "What business is it of yours what I do, Malfoy?"

His face a snarl of hatred, Draco began to rant. "Believe it or not, I don't care anything about what you do, Potter. I think you're stupid, and I wish you were dead, but that's not why I was there." A hot flush of anger spread from Malfoy's neck up to his pale face.

Harry simply kept his green eyes focused on the blond boy's pale eyes. Concentrating on the _Legilimens!_ spell, Harry's mouth drew into a thin line as though he had no intention of rising to Malfoy's baited words.

His tone still full of hate, Malfoy continued, "You think everything that happens is just about you."

Part of him was hoping to infuriate Draco into saying something rash so Harry shrugged indifferently. It took all his self-control to keep his voice even. "If you say so…. How did you know where we were?"

But Harry's nonchalant response had the opposite effect. Draco took a deep breath and visibly tried to match Harry's controlled demeanor. Resuming his usual scornful expression, Draco arched an eyebrow and said, "Like you weren't completely predictable. There's not exactly a long list of romantic hideaways in Hogsmeade. But please…Henri's? Such a cliché."

As though searching for someone to agree with him, Draco looked around for Snape, who was leaning against the wall behind him, breaking the _Legilimens_ spell. Harry frowned. From the images in the other boy's mind, he thought Draco had probably joined the Death Eaters sometime this winter, but he couldn't be sure. With a swift flick of his wand, he split open Draco's sleeves.

"What the…you're paying for these robes, Potter. And this shirt was expensive." Draco spat out, flustered and angry.

Professor Snape ignored this comment as he stepped forward. He cast a reproachful look at Harry, but pulled Draco's left arm free of the ropes. The skin on his forearm was exposed for all to see, smooth and creamy white, unblemished by so much as a freckle, except for the angry red skin surrounding the newly acquired Dark Mark. The air suddenly seemed sucked from the room. The adults stiffened, drawing themselves up in grim outrage. Harry tightened his grip on his wand. Snape's usual composure was shattered as conflicting emotions crossed his face. Finally he stared at Draco fiercely and said, "You didn't have to do this."

Squirming under Snape's intense look, Draco wrenched his arm away and said, "Of course, I did…but you're right. I never planned to join them. Honestly…why would I? Most of my father's friends are locked up with my father. The rest are just a bunch of crazy old farts who sit around and moan about the good old days when they could torture Muggles for sport."

Appearing unmoved by Draco's speech, Dumbledore asked, "If that is your opinion, then please explain the mark on your arm. How did you become a participant in the attack at the pub today?"

Draco turned his head away and stared at the floor.

"Perhaps it is time for that tea, Professor Snape," Remus suggested, giving him a significant look.

Conjuring a tray with a large teapot and several cups onto the table, Snape began to pour steaming hot tea out for each of them.

Cracking an insolent smile, Draco said, "I like mine sweet, Professor…and could someone do something about these ropes? I don't need to be strapped down. I don't even have my wand."

Moody obligingly removed the ropes holding Draco's arms, but left his legs bound to the chair. With an expression of care and concern, Snape slid a cup close enough for the Slytherin boy to reach. In a sad, almost regretful voice, he whispered, "I'm only trying to help you." Draco lifted it to his lips and took a delicate sip.

Remembering when Snape had slipped him truth serum in his tea last fall, Harry didn't touch the cup sitting in front of him. With his arms folded over his chest, he stared at Draco who seemed pleased that his request for tea had been granted. Looking at that smug expression, Harry felt anger spread inside him.

It must have shown in his face because after draining his teacup, Draco leveled his gaze at Harry and asked, "What're you looking at, Potter? Surprised that someone would be concerned about me in this situation? You probably think they should only worry about you."

Harry's response was to silently cast the spell to enter Draco's mind again.

Draco set his cup down in its saucer with a loud clatter. Glaring at Harry, he said, "You just expect everyone to be on your side…Quidditch games, House points, everything…you're always supposed to be the one who wins…no matter what. You probably think they should stack the deck in your favor. Umbridge is the only one who ever got it right around here."

The staring contest between the two teenagers was broken when Draco started shaking his head and shouting. "Oh…don't tell me…you do the mind thing, too? I can't believe it…you have a lot in common with him, Potter, has anyone ever told you that? But he'll beat you in the end… He's already got your blood, you know. Nothing will stop him now."

Still seated in the chair next to Draco, Dumbledore asked quietly, "What does that mean? Expain yourself. Were you asked to obtain some of Mr. Potter's blood?"

Seeming slightly dazed, Draco began to speak freely. "Yes. My mother invited the Dark Lord to Malfoy Manor at Christmas…to ask for his help. But before she could even ask, he started to speak with me. He did that mind probe thing and he told me I had to work for him since my father is gone. He said his first priority is to get some of Potter's blood — even if it's just a few drops."

"Did he explain why?" Dumbledore asked.

Speaking as though he thought he was telling a fine joke, Draco said, "He didn't…but his minions talk pretty freely behind his back. The rumor is that he needs the blood to help kill Potter here — some sort of ancient prophecy or something. No one was too clear about what it said, but it must be the prophecy father was trying to get when they caught him at the ministry."

Sitting down heavily in the chair on the other side of Draco, Snape asked, "What did he offer in exchange?"

Beginning to ramble, Draco twisted his neck while he spoke as if he were trying to throw off an invisible hold. "Money, power…all the women I could ever want. Is that what you think? Well, it wasn't like that. My mother's really upset. She just wanted to ask him to find a way to release my father, but the Dark Lord is extremely powerful. No one can refuse him anything. You're stupid to try. He knows more about magic than anyone."

Giving a little shudder, Draco continued, "But he's so ugly…he doesn't look human really. Those red eyes are so creepy and his hands with the long thin fingers. They're so disgusting…they're way beyond glamour charms. Mother asked him to promise to free my father. In exchange she offered…among other things…my help at Hogwarts."

"So you did this for your mother?" Snape asked.

Draco said simply, "No…I want my father released as much as she does. It was an easy choice."

"How were you planning to get some of my blood?" Harry asked.

With his familiar smirk, Draco said, "Now getting your blood…that wasn't so easy. I tried on the train, but I couldn't get you alone. My mother gave me a potion, and told me to kill you if I couldn't get some of your blood. Your death would have finished off that stupid prophecy rumor anyway, but that idiot Mudblood took the potion instead. That's your trouble, Potter. You're constantly surrounded."

"Surrounded?" Harry asked, narrowing his eyes at Draco. Hearing him speak as though Hermione taking a fatal potion was a mere annoyance made Harry extremely angry, especially when he thought of the worry and stress that Ron and all their friends went through before they found a cure. He pressed his lips together and watched the truth serum continue to do its work.

Draco obligingly continued to ramble. "Surrounded, I mean…I tried to get your blood. If I could have…that would have been the end of it, but those bloody D.A. people are around you most of the time. It's like a whole troop of bodyguards."

Looking more composed, Snape fixed Draco a second cup of tea and asked, "What other attempts did you make to collect some of Potter's blood?

After taking a long drink of tea, Draco resumed talking. "Since he's never alone, I had to approach him in public…so I challenged him to fight me at the dueling contest. With a cutting hex and a bit of a mess, no one would notice if I took a vial or two. But that didn't work. Potter's such a ponce that he would only demonstrate that Muggle style fencing with his instructor." Draco smiled menacingly. "Like you'll be able to defeat the Dark Lord with a bloody sword…I'd _really_ like to see you try."

Snape impatiently changed the subject. "Why did you set a Lethifold loose in the Potions classroom last Halloween?"

With a contemptuous sneer, Draco said, "I didn't," and continued to sip his tea.

"But you did…" Snape began.

Dumbledore raised his hand to stop him. "I'm sure Mr. Malfoy isn't responsible for everything that has happened this year. Were other students helping with the attack today?"

Pursing his lips, Draco said, "I met the others in a clearing outside Hogsmeade…I didn't see any other students…but someone from Hogwarts must have told them you'd be at Henri's. They already knew that when I arrived."

"What was your plan?" Harry asked simply.

Smiling blankly, Draco asked, "Wouldn't you like to know?" Then, unable to stop himself, he proceeded to explain. "It was simple really. We would come through the floo entrance in great enough numbers that people would be scared and scatter. Then Dimitri Dolohov, he was the tall one, would grab you and force a Portkey into your hand."

Draco was beginning to look pleasantly drowsy as he kept talking. "At first they didn't want me to come with them. I guess they were worried that I wouldn't want to shoot stunners at my friends and classmates. One of those boorish Bulgarians said that I shouldn't risk getting caught. They were all trying to order me around. The Malfoy name doesn't have the power it once had, not with my father in prison." He stopped and drank some more tea. "I'm hungry," Draco said plaintively.

A plate of sandwiches appeared on the table in front of him. While Draco crammed a few of them into his mouth, Professor Moody cast a charm on him so they could hear him, but Draco couldn't hear them. Then he asked the question on everyone's mind. "What are we going to do with him?"

Harry had a few suggestions, but he kept them to himself.

Snape answered forcefully, "We have to keep him at Hogwarts! If the Ministry sends him to prison with the other Death Eaters, he'll learn nothing but Dark magic. They won't keep him in prison long, but the damage will be done. And if we expel him and he is released, he'll have no other choice, but to join the ranks of our enemies. We need to offer him a third option."

Clearing his throat Moody held up the Death Eater mask on the table and said, "It's too late to offer him choices. He's already made his."

Snape defended him. "This wasn't Draco's choice; his mother made him join them. She's the one who should answer for this."

'He was the one pointing the wand!' Harry thought.

Professor Dumbledore replied, "We were unable to reach Mrs. Malfoy today. Her household claims that she's left the country. Since Mr. Malfoy is a minor, enrolled in this school, Hogwarts will temporarily assume custody of him."

"Doesn't the Ministry have a say in this? The other Death Eaters they captured today will most likely be sent to prison." Lupin asked.

'Last year they were ready to send me to prison for conjuring a Patronus to protect myself!' Harry felt the anger within him continue to build as their conversation progressed.

Shaking his head, Dumbledore said, "There's no way to know what the Ministry might do. Do you think it's at all possible that he didn't fully understand the consequences of his actions?"

Moody growled, "I think he knew exactly what he was doing today…and we can't ignore his confession that he poisoned Miss Granger. The fact that he meant to kill Harry instead hardly mitigates the crime." Under his breath he mumbled, "I have a trunk compartment we could keep him in…"

'Now someone's talking some sense,' thought Harry, smiling at the old Auror.

Visibly distraught, Professor Snape said, "As his head of house, I should have a say in what happens to him. The Ministry knows nothing about the incident with Miss Granger. Indeed the only proof we have that a crime was even committed is a drug-induced confession. And as far as today is concerned, we could convince the Ministry that Draco was there, like the other students, to enjoy a day out with friends. We could say that one of the Death Eaters put the mask on him and he was hit with a stray hex. They don't need to know about the mark on his arm." His voice was pleading and sincere. "I know that I can help him if I'm given the chance."

Harry looked over at Draco, munching on a sandwich with a dazed expression, wondering what Snape saw in him that gave him such hope.

Unconcerned about the rather serious conversation going on outside his hearing, Draco looked at the others around the table and suggested, "Some chocolate biscuits would go well with these sandwiches."

Searching the faces for a response, but only finding intensely serious expressions, he continued speaking. "No? Fine…then…what was I telling you? Oh yeah, we were in the clearing and the others were telling me that I couldn't go with them. Then the word came from the Dark Lord that we were supposed to make sure we took both Potter and Ginny Weasley back to him. No one else could identify her so someone gave me a mask, and I joined the raid." He took another bite of his sandwich.

At the mention of Ginny, Harry lost it. A pulse of power snapped through the air, making the torches burn bright blue for a moment. In a deep voice, Harry said, "She's only fifteen." He couldn't fathom how Draco could speak so casually about turning Ginny over to Death Eaters. Or make a choice to kill Harry or anyone else, as though taking someone's life didn't matter, as though it was easy.

Of course, Draco still couldn't hear him. He looked around as if wondering where the crackle in the air came from. Then he swallowed his food and said, "I know you think she's something special, Potter. Maybe she's good in bed or something. But really…she wears all those hand-me-down robes. How can you stand it?"

Several of the torches exploded, dimming the light in the dungeon considerably. Dumbledore calmly uttered a spell to replace them while Remus put his hand on Harry's shoulder and said, "Maybe it's time to go check on how she's doing."

Harry stared darkly at Draco, shaking his head, and said, "We should find out if he can identify anyone else." His head was beginning to hurt.

Professor Dumbledore looked unruffled. "And we will, Harry. Why don't you go see to the injured?"

Giving Malfoy one last malevolent look, Harry agreed. Walking away from the interrogation room with Remus, Harry felt ashamed of himself. They'd asked him to leave because of that power pulse. They knew he was having a hard time controlling his anger, and they didn't want Draco to accidentally end up a dark smear on the dungeon wall. Neither did he, for that matter.

Aurora appeared and settled onto Harry's shoulder as he walked away with Remus. She sang out a low, sweet note, soothing Harry's bristled nerves. Until this moment, Harry hadn't realized just how he distressed he'd become listening to Malfoy talk, but her song and her warm, soft presence against his cheek calmed him considerably.

"Ah…so this is Aurora," Remus said, reaching out to the phoenix on Harry's shoulder and stroking her feathers. "She's beautiful."

The phoenix seemed to preen at their attention, then disappeared in a flash of fire. Harry laughed, "She pretty much comes and goes as she pleases." Remus smiled, presumably relieved that Harry's anger was under control.

Neither of them spoke again until they reached the main hall. Remus said goodbye. He was headed off to Wolfhaven for the full moon. Harry promised to owl him if there was any news. "But don't be surprised if I send a school owl." Hedwig had been avoiding Harry ever since she met Aurora, flying to the top rafters in the owlery whenever he stopped by.

Harry hurried to the infirmary to find Ginny. The Hogsmeade attack had significantly raised the stakes as far as he was concerned. He couldn't see any way to reason with someone who thought the way Draco did. Draco didn't seem to comprehend what was at risk in this war. Harry had always realized that they were fighting to preserve the wizarding way of life, but the attack on the pub reminded him that it was also personal.

Harry wasn't going to lose Ginny without a fight. He might mess up himself and do something stupid to make her break up with him. Sometimes he thought it was more likely than not that she'd discover he was pretty ordinary and find someone better, but he vowed he'd never let anything threaten her safety again. Harry felt like it was all down to him, to either find a better way to protect her, or to somehow remove the threat entirely.

The infirmary had quieted down considerably. Only eight of the beds were still occupied — a testament to Madam Pomfrey's healing skills. Walking silently between the rows of sleeping students, Harry looked for Ginny.

Madam Pomfrey walked briskly past him, and said, "Visiting hours are over, Mr. Potter. You'll have to come back tomorrow morning."

He smiled at her. Although she must have been working for hours, she didn't seem tired as she poured out a potion for a patient by the window. "Is there anything you need, Madam Pomfrey?"

She relented a little at his offer. Smiling, she shook her head. "We have everything under control here. Thank you for your concern. Miss Weasley offered to stay and help as well, but I ordered her to her dormitory to get some rest. Now I'm ordering you to do the same, and drink this before you sleep." She pulled a vial out of one of her many pockets.

Taking the small brown vial from her although he had no intention of actually taking it, he asked, "Dreamless Sleep?"

Shaking her head, she answered, "Just a mild calming draught."

Harry noticed Neville asleep in one of the cots, strapped into place. Even in the semi-dark Harry could tell that Neville's face was a brilliant purple. "What happened to him?"

Madam Pomfrey gave him a reproachful look and walked back toward the storeroom without answering. Of course, she was careful about patient confidentiality.

A figure stirred in a nearby bed. "Harry? Is that you?" In the dim light of the sleeping infirmary, Harry could barely make out the outline of Cho Chang. She said, "Neville had some sort of accident in the Greenhouses."

Moving quickly to her side, Harry asked, "And what happened to you? Were you in the pub? I didn't even see you there."

She looked small and dark in the infirmary cot as she explained quietly, "I was one of the students disguised by a flowering shrub. We used our napkins and the spell you taught us in the D.A. There were three of us in the front window. Didn't you notice? Of course, lucky me, I was hit with a stray cutting hex anyway…at least nothing fell off. It could have been worse. I mean…at least they weren't throwing Unforgiveables."

At the end of her speech, she gave a little laugh, but Harry didn't join her. An overwhelming sense of guilt hit him while listening to her talk. This was exactly what her brother Charles was worried about. None of these people would be in the infirmary, if he hadn't been 'stupid enough to walk around Hogsmeade, knowing there was a price on his head.' That's how Draco had put it…or close to it. Aloud he said, "It was my fault. I shouldn't have been there. I'm so sorry you were hurt."

Cho stopped laughing. In fact, she didn't answer him, but Ernie MacMillan, lying on the cot next to hers said, "It most certainly wasn't your fault and you had every right to be there. They didn't just attack you; they attacked all of us."

Harry smiled at him. "Ernie…I saw you fending off two or three of them all by yourself. Well done, you." His smile faded as he asked, "So when will you both get out of here?"

Cho answered quickly, "I'll be out tomorrow. Madam Pomfrey just made me stay overnight to give the Blood Replenishing Potion time to work. But…" She looked anxiously at Ernie.

"I'll be here for a week or so. I've got more potions than she does," Ernie said with a casual sweep of his hand toward the table next to him where there were several potion vials of various heights and color.

In a more serious tone, Ernie said, "I'm glad you escaped unharmed, Harry. We all know they were after you."

"Ginny was their target, too. And we couldn't have escaped without everyone's help, Ernie…thanks." Harry extended his hand to Ernie who shook it warmly. Harry nodded to Cho, too, suddenly glad that it was dark. "And I promise to start collecting those wood fairies for you tomorrow. I'll get someone to collect your other schoolwork, too." Ernie and he were only in a few classes together.

Cho objected quickly, saying she'd already promised to get his homework for him. Ernie's facial expression was enough for Harry to get the message that he'd rather have the lovely Cho bringing him his Ancient Rune notes. Harry repeated his promise to collect wood fairies and said goodnight.

The Great Hall was rather empty the following morning at breakfast, even for a Sunday. Professor Sprout was all by herself at the faculty table. Harry had finished his run early, reveling in the peace of the mountains and the pure blue sky. Aurora had been his only company, flying alongside him or circling high overhead, while he ran near the lake.

Sitting alone, Harry helped himself to porridge and pumpkin juice. He thought over the things that Draco had said the night before and wondered if he'd have another chance to speak with him before he was transferred to the Ministry for trial. Or would Professor Snape's idea of sweeping it all under the carpet prevail?

He regretted losing control last night. Malfoy had pushed all his buttons, talking about poisoning Hermione like it was just a big game and making mean spirited comments about Ginny's clothes. Harry never really noticed her robes were second hand…he always looked so lovely.

If he thought about her clothes at all, he thought about that outfit she always wore with the little white tank top, gray track pants and little hooded jacket. That's what she usually wore when he dreamed about her. Although she'd worn that soft white sweater to the pub yesterday, now that was new, and very…touchable.

He snapped out of his reverie as Ron slapped the Daily Prophet on the table beside him. Hermione calmly poured two cups of tea, but Ron excitedly pointed to the Daily Prophet report about the Hogsmeade attack, and said, "I leave you alone with my sister for an afternoon and look what happens! That's it, we're group dating from now on--the more the merrier!"

Hermione rolled her eyes as she handed Ron his tea. "Oh, honestly, Ron. It's not as though anyone died. You're just sorry you missed all the action. And I thought you enjoyed our time alone yesterday."

She said the last sentence with an expression on her face that Harry'd never seen before. Ron's ears turned red as he stuffed a piece of toast in his mouth. It would have all seemed funny, if Harry hadn't still felt guilty about endangering everyone. He shook his head at his two best friends and focused on his breakfast.

His mouth still full of food, Ron said, "Well? We've waited patiently. Now you have to explain every detail of what happened yesterday. We've only heard Ginny's version."

When Harry had returned to Gryffindor tower the evening before, he'd found Ron asleep in front of the fire. Hermione had been out on her prefect rounds.

Eyes bright with anticipation, Hermione turned her attention to him and said, "Be sure you don't leave anything out…I want to hear every detail."

Harry told the story of the attack, and his phoenix' part in their escape. Finally he shook his head and said, "I'm sorry about yesterday. We should have just stayed here or worn disguises or something. I…I feel so stupid. What was I thinking, going out like that when I know there's a price on my head." Again, the echo of Draco's words came through Harry's thoughts. He was reluctant to tell them about the Slytherin's involvement in the attack and his confession about poisoning Hermione, knowing that Ron would be out for blood once he heard.

Ron looked chagrined. "That's not what I meant, Harry." He set his fork down with a loud clunk and shook his head. "Oh…Hermione's right…I've just been wishing that…well, we used to go with you when you had an adventure. Now things seem to happen when we're not around. And, you aren't to blame! It's just…she's my sister and I want her to be safe."

Arriving just in time to hear the end of Ron's speech, Ginny dropped her heavy book bag on the floor and slipped into the seat next to Harry. "So does Harry, you prat. He gave me a Portkey, I just didn't have it with me at the crucial moment." She gratefully took the cup of tea Harry handed her.

Ron dropped the third piece of toast he was buttering and shouted, "He gave you a Portkey and you didn't use it!"

"Shhhh…Ron you're so…." Ginny hissed at her brother and rolled her eyes.

Hermione said calmly, "Everyone keep your voices down. Ron, I'm guessing Ginny's Portkey is a bit of a secret since it's sort of illegal to just make them whenever you want."

Visibly making an effort to calm himself, Ron answered, "Oh…it's not really anything more than a fine if the Ministry catches you. They just regulate Portkeys because they're so difficult to make. If someone sold one that wasn't made properly, people could be sent inside rocks or something. Harry knows what he's doing."

While Ron and Hermione wrangled about Portkeys, Harry spoke quietly to Ginny. He was relieved to see her. "You look nice this morning," he said, smiling at her appreciatively. Sure enough she was wearing the same gray exercise outfit that she often wore, the one Harry had just been thinking about. Her hair, glistening red and gold in the sunlight, was pulled up with little curly wisps escaping along her hairline.

Ginny smiled at him, and laughed softly, presumably at the goofy look on his face. "I thought maybe we could play some Quidditch. We still have to beat the Hufflepuffs if we want to win the cup this year. And Zach Smith told me their team's practicing four times a week." Giving her bulging book bag a nudge with her foot, she said, "I'm tired of studying for the O.W.L.'s. Let's forget about Portkeys and Death Eater attacks and take advantage of this sunshine." It was still February, but it was a bright, clear day.

Everyone liked that suggestion. Even Hermione agreed that it was too fine a day to read inside. She liked the idea of taking her books to the Quidditch stands to watch.

Turning his attention back to food, Harry loaded eggs and bacon onto his plate and gathered his courage. "Too bad we already played Slytherin. They'll be easier to beat now that Malfoy's off the team." This comment was greeted with dead silence.

Hermione finally asked, "Why won't Malfoy be playing?"

First swallowing his mouthful of bacon, Harry asked, "Wasn't there anything about Malfoy in the Prophet?" he asked Ron.

Shaking his head, Ron answered, "It just described everyone who attacked as Death Eaters; they didn't have any of their names. Was Malfoy there?"

Harry nodded and told the rest of the story quickly. "Malfoy's finished. He was one of the Death Eaters involved in the attack. They caught him with that mark on his arm, and they'll probably never let him go. Apparently they brought him along to identify Ginny. And he's confessed to everything…including giving Hermione that potion."

Ginny sat in stunned silence while Ron threw down his fork with a clatter and shouted, "I knew it!"

Hermione seemed saddened by the news. She spoke as if she was wondering aloud. "It's one thing for Malfoy to harass and threaten people, but…to actually attack them? What will happen to him now? He's only sixteen."

Staring at Hermione incredulously, Ron said, "Ginny's only fifteen, but he tried to turn her over to You Know Who yesterday. And you could have _died_ from that potion, Hermione! Don't waste your sympathy." He looked over at the Slytherin table suspiciously and added, "Who else has already joined?"

Everyone around him groaned.

Harry watched Ginny, staring thoughtfully into her tea. She seemed to be taking the news about Draco in stride…or maybe her sleep potion hadn't quite worn off. What Draco'd said about her showed how little the Slytherin understood about the importance of friends. Harry smiled at her.

Hermione said resolutely, "It's not really a surprise, is it? I mean, we've always thought Malfoy was capable of something hateful. How many times did you tell me that you thought he'd given me that potion, Ron? I see no reason to be upset now that we've confirmed his guilt. It's out of our hands, anyway. They'll lock him up and throw away the key. I'm ready to go outside. Ginny's right. It's a pretty day. Let's go get our books." She put her napkin on her plate and stood to leave.

If anyone was surprised at how well Hermione took the news, they didn't show it. Ron followed her dutifully out of the Great Hall, but Harry and Ginny stayed behind because she wasn't through eating.

"I tried to stay awake last night…really I did. But Madam Pomfrey's potion made me too sleepy."

"And Ron had your spot on the couch," Harry said, smiling at her. "How's your ankle?"

"Madam Pomfrey heals broken bones easily so I'll survive." She took another bite toast, chewed carefully and swallowed. Then she looked at him nervously and asked, "How did it really go…talking to Malfoy?"

Harry pushed his plate away and spread his hands out on the table to look at them. "Snape gave him something and he talked on and on, but he didn't really say anything new."

"I wonder…" Ginny began, then took a long drink of juice to stall.

At least it seemed to Harry that she wasn't sure she should speak her mind. "What is it? I want to know what you think."

Ginny set her glass down and wiped the juice off her lips with a napkin. Looking contrite, she said, "I wonder if the Repel Gel had anything to do with him choosing to join them."

Concern for her washed over him. He put his arm around her, and said, "You're nicer than he is. He attacked you and you're worried about whether or not your prank bothered him?"

He thought back to Malfoy in the dungeon, smugly sipping his tainted tea and spilling his guts. "This didn't have anything to do with you," Harry continued. "Malfoy took that Dark Mark on his arm over Christmas -- before we even came back to school. Voldemort showed up in person and forced him to choose. Although from the sound of it, Malfoy didn't resist him very hard."

Ginny leaned her head against his shoulder, making him feel stronger somehow. Then she sighed and said, "I wonder what things would be like without You Know Who making things difficult…I mean, Malfoy would definitely still be a big prat, but he wouldn't be this bad. He probably only _really_ cares about his friends and Quidditch just like…"

"Just like me?" Harry laughed. "Well…I'm not so sure that he and I think alike. I mean, he did confess to poisoning Hermione…with a potion that was meant for me."

Lifting her head to look at him, Ginny said, "We've been over this Harry before. None of this is your fault. You found the cure for Hermione. And yesterday would've been a disaster if you hadn't been there. I'm sure they'd have done something worse than knock a table over onto my foot." She put her hand over his and whispered in his ear. "You — and that blasted phoenix of yours — you rescued me."

The feel of her breath on his face was too much for Harry to resist. It was easy. With one simple motion, he kissed her gently, reaching up to touch her face with his free hand. He could hear the few first years sitting near them giggling and saying, "Ooh…." But he didn't care.

Talking to her always made him feel better about things. And she was safe; that's what mattered. When they broke the kiss, they left to collect their Quidditch gear, glad that the Great Hall was practically empty.

The good weather had given many people the same idea. By noon, the Quidditch stands were half full of people, some studying, others just talking. Hermione had cast a powerful heat charm on the Gryffindor section so it was pretty crowded. Students from every house had shown up, hoping to socialize, play Quidditch or just fly around.

Ginny and Harry decided to play Chaser and see how often they could score against Ron. The two of them flew hard and fast, trying to outdo each other with fancy loops and dives. Ron finally called, "Oi…one of you might be able to score if you two would stop showing off for each other and threw the Quaffle at me once and a while." Harry promptly threw the ball and hit Ron lightly in the head.

Harry flew upside down while passing over Ron's head and said, "Oops, sorry, Ron. Of course, we'll start taking practicing more seriously." Then he dove toward the ground to recover the falling Quaffle.

Copying Harry's move, Ginny yelled at her brother before she dove. "This isn't the Cannons! Lighten up. You should try this…we're feeding our brains."

"You're spending too much time around Luna, Ginny. And don't think I won't write Mum and tell her!" Ron yelled back and then decided that he should, after all, try flying upside down, just so he'd know what he was talking about.

Meanwhile, Hermione had made herself comfortable. In addition to the heat charm on the stands, she charmed her book to float in front of her at a convenient angle. A simple, 'Turn,' command, and the page she was reading turned on its own, leaving her hands free to take notes.

Luna arrived in the stands, her face covered with a spray of purple spots. She appeared to be having a difficult time putting her arm through the sleeve of her cloak. Every few steps, she tried anew, only to be frustrated with the hopelessly tangled garment.

It took a few moments for Hermione to figure out how to phrase it, but she had to ask, "Do you know that your face is slightly…purple?"

Seeming unfazed, Luna answered, "Oh, yes." Then she sat down next to Hermione, with one arm stuck in her twisted cloak, as though there wasn't anything more to say on the subject. "Have you seen Neville today?"

Shaking her head, Hermione asked gently, "What happened?"

"We were experimenting on…on a kind of berry plant yesterday when things…went a little wrong." Luna stopped and shrugged.

Hoping her face showed none of the amusement she felt, Hermione repeated sympathetically, "A little wrong?"

Luna explained calmly, "We activated some kind of natural protection the plant has, probably to keep Dugbogs away in the wild. As you see, my face is quite… strange today. And Neville jumped in front of me at the worst possible moment."

Lowering her voice conspiratorially, Hermione asked, "Is there no counter charm or potion that will help?"

Staring at Hermione directly for the first time, Luna said, "They tried. And I think the spots may be turning a little pinker. Anyway, Madam Pomfrey said sunlight might help so I thought I'd see if Neville was out here."

Pointing at the Quidditch players, Hermione said, "We should ask Ginny. She knows a lot about counter charms…growing up with Fred and George, she's really learned quite a few." She looked up in time to be reminded why she hated flying, Ron was upside down on his broom, diving after Ginny and laughing like it was a big joke.

Lavender and Parvati sat down nearby, first spreading a big maroon and gold blanket out on the bench. They both wore soft muggle sweaters and scarves. Lavender pulled out a copy of Witch Weekly and began to interrupt Parvati with interesting tidbits from an article entitled, "_Follicle Fallout: The facts about hair charms."_ Parvati seemed to be more interested in what was happening a few benches below them.

Lowering her voice so that only Luna could hear, Hermione asked, "What exactly are you and Neville working on in that Greenhouse?"

Shocked, Luna looked around nervously before speaking. "I…I don't know if Neville would want me to say. We have several different projects. It's probably better to keep quiet in case they don't work out."

Several rows below them in the same stands, Millicent Bulstrode occupied a spot all by herself, sighing rather dramatically. A few seats over on the same bench sat Vincent Crabbe, pretending to be very interested in a book. On the other side of Crabbe sat Gregory Goyle with his brawny arm around none other than Pansy Parkinson. She was leaning against him and making an occasional sniffing noise.

"What do you suppose happened to them?" Parvati said, interrupting Lavender's explanation of a new charm to fight split ends.

"Lover's spat?" suggested Parvati. Then she shuddered involuntarily.

Of course, Hermione knew what had happened to Malfoy, but she didn't want to tell anyone. Harry had told them about Malfoy in confidence. And Pansy was probably just upset that Malfoy had gone missing. His involvement in yesterday's attack would be common knowledge soon enough.

It was Sophie Moon and Blaise Zabini's arrival that shattered the calm afternoon. They walked in, bundled up in winter cloaks, and sat by themselves, apparently oblivious to the people around them. Blaise was whispering in Sophie's ear and she laughed loudly, then stopped as though she was embarrassed and whispered back in his ear.

The two were so wrapped up in themselves that they didn't notice that Pansy Parkinson was walking purposefully toward them, Crabbe and Goyle following in her wake, leaving Millicent to sulk by herself.

"I suppose you're happy. You got your wish…Draco's vanished." Pansy shouted shrilly, bearing down on the couple menacingly.

They turned in her direction. Blaise instinctually stepped in front of Sophie. "Wha…what's your problem, Parkinson? We didn't do anything to Malfoy."

But his protest fell on deaf ears. "Yes, you did…you all did. I expect it from people like her." She pointed to Hermione who was watching with interest. "But you…you're supposed to be our kind of people…and you've never shown Draco the respect he deserved."

Hermione could barely make out the deep voice of Blaise, answering coldly, "Don't waste your tears on him. He'll show up soon enough."

Pansy sniffed loudly, and shouted, "You don't know what you're talking about!" As Hermione watched, Gregory Goyle draped his arm around Pansy again. She was still making soft snuffling noises and her lower lip was sticking out and trembling slightly. Vincent Crabbe joined him in comforting the distraught girl.

Lavender said under her breath, so only the Gryffindor's could hear, "I'll give her this…the girl knows how to pout."

When some of them laughed quietly at Lavender's comment, Pansy turned on them, looking ready to pounce. "You're a hateful bunch…the lot of you can just…just sod off." With that pronouncement, she left the Quidditch stands, her entourage in tow.

Seamus landed quietly near Lavender and asked, "What was that all about?"

Arranging her face in an imitation of Pansy Parkinson's pout, Lavender said, "Where've you been? I was…no…I haven't forgiven you…" She turned her back on Seamus, but she winked at Parvati who kept her face solemnly sympathetic.

"I'm so sorry…what can I do?" Seamus asked. When she didn't turn around, he pleaded, "Whatever I did, I'm sorry…I didn't mean to."

Lavender turned back toward him, head down as though she was upset and let him console her for a moment. Then she said with a sigh, "Oh, I'll be all right. You go back and enjoy yourself. I know you'd rather be flying around with the other boys. It's okay."

Looking reluctantly at the Quidditch pitch which was still full of people flying around enjoying themselves, Seamus insisted that he'd rather stay with her. Lavender was just as adamant that he should go back to flying. When he'd finally left she turned to Parvati and said, "He's just so easy that I can't resist."

Hermione rolled her eyes at her roommates, and spoke her mind. "That wasn't nice Lavender. He won't like it if he finds out you play these games with him. Did Seamus really even do anything for you to be mad about?"

Lavender shrugged and said, "I'd catch him if he did and make him sorry."

Lifting the copy of Witch Weekly she was reading, Parvati added, "It says in this article that you should always keep your man guessing or he might lose interest. It's not our fault boys are clueless." Her eyebrows went wide and innocent as she spoke.

The day was unseasonably warm and sunny, but a brisk wind came up by early afternoon, forcing everyone back inside. While Harry and Ron secured the Quidditch equipment in the storage shed, Dobby appeared with a request from Professor Dumbledore for Harry to come to his office.

Harry found the door to the Headmaster's office standing open, but no one was inside. Even Fawkes' perch stood empty. The portraits were pretending to sleep, and Harry decided not to bother them. He conjured himself a glass of pumpkin juice and settled into one of the cushy chairs in front of Dumbledore's desk.

Wishing that he'd taken the time to change out of his sweaty Quidditch gear, Harry was about to leave when Dumbledore came hastily through the hearth on the other side of the room.

Magically dusting off his robes, he said, "Ah…Harry, thank you for being so prompt. We have a situation that is most unfortunate." Dumbledore seemed to be choosing his words carefully. "…most unfortunate…I know you'll want to hear all about it. Could I offer you some refreshment? No…I see you've already found something."

"No need to stall, Professor. What is it?" Harry was worried. Something bad must have happened, maybe to Professor Lupin.

Looking tired, Dumbledore sat down in his desk chair and said, "Draco Malfoy has disappeared from Hogwarts. The house elves reported early this morning that the dungeon was empty when they delivered his breakfast. He must have escaped sometime in the night."

Studying a patch of sunlight across the Headmaster's carpet, Harry asked, "Could he have escaped on his own?"

Sounding tired, Dumbledore answered, "I don't believe so."

"Where's Snape?" Harry asked, remembering how anxious Snape was to take Malfoy's part during last night's interview.

His face unreadable, Dumbledore answered. "_Professor _Snape has also disappeared. I presume he is out looking for Mr. Malfoy. He is determined to save him if at all possible."

Of course, Harry immediately jumped to the conclusion that Snape had somehow helped Malfoy disappear, but he realized that whatever his private opinions were, the Headmaster would never agree. No matter what happened, Dumbledore would always trust Snape.

Hoping to point out the suspicious nature of Snape's disappearance, Harry asked, "Did anyone speak with Snape before he left? I mean, couldn't you talk him out of it? Someone else could have looked for Malfoy…someone who isn't a target." As far as Harry knew Snape hadn't left the school since the Lethifold attack. Then it occurred to him that Dumbledore had even more things to worry about. "What will you tell the Ministry about Malfoy?"

Dumbledore looked him in the eyes and said, "I see you've comprehended the difficulties of the situation, Harry. Not only is your training coming along splendidly, but you seemed to have matured in other matters as well. It's good that you understand the circumstances facing all of us."

While he welcomed the Headmaster's compliments, Harry noted that he didn't really answer his questions. "I'm not sure that I do understand, sir. Why did Snape go after him? Malfoy doesn't need anyone to save him from Death Eaters. He is one."

Last night, Snape's real concern seemed to be what the Ministry would do to Malfoy. His escape meant he wouldn't have to worry about that. While the Headmaster would probably take the fall for letting Draco go missing, he had loads of influence these days. Dumbledore wouldn't be in any real trouble. People relied on him too much.

"Sometimes people need to be saved from themselves." Dumbledore's voice was gentle and his expression was full of hope, as though he wished rather than expected Harry to understand what he'd said.

Harry thought over Dumbledore's words. Either the Headmaster was gullible enough to believe that Snape's real motive was somehow to capture and reform Draco Malfoy, or he was saying that Snape had acted rashly in chasing after Malfoy and needed to be rescued himself. Despite himself, Harry knew which way his own thoughts were leaning.

The afternoon sun disappeared as clouds rolled in. Harry put his hand around the summons stone in his pocket and wordlessly cast the spell to call Aurora to his side. She appeared, fluttering behind him for a moment, then settled on his shoulder. "Would you like me to go after him, sir?" he asked.

Dumbledore took the appearance of Harry's phoenix in stride. "That's the last thing I would expect of you, Harry. This whole thing could be a trap…meant for you. We must, in any case, consider it a possibility."

"You just don't trust me," Harry said, trying to keep his anger out of his voice. It cut him deeply to think that after all his work preparing to fight, the Headmaster didn't think he was ready.

Smiling at him, Dumbledore said, "Trust goes both ways, Harry."

Seeing his chance, Harry said, "Then let's put things out in the open. I'll tell you what you want to know…if you'll do the same for me."

Dumbledore gave him a long appraising look. Finally he said, "All right…besides the times your phoenix has whisked you away, what have you been doing when you leave Hogwarts without permission?"

Answering promptly, Harry said, "I've been looking for information." Reaching into his pocket, he felt the edges of the book about Myrddin's torch. He wanted to ask Dumbledore about it, but he remembered last summer when the Headmaster told him that it was his mystery to figure out. "I've gone back to the cave where we found Professor Lupin last summer. It's where I found the cure for Hermione."

He hesitated for a moment, but he knew Dumbledore should know. "I found out from a ghost that haunts the cave…Voldemort and his men have been poking around there since last summer."

Many of the portraits grumbled. Phineas Nigellus said loudly, "Typical Gryffindor, thinks reckless means brave."

A grave expression on his face, Dumbledore said, "You've acted very irresponsibly. And disregarded several school rules." Leaning back in his chair, he closed his eyes for a moment. Then he looked at Harry, disbelieving. "Harry…the Order has spent a great deal of time and effort trying to keep you safe and you've…."

Harry interrupted him. "I know…but I never would have found Aurora if I hadn't tried to figure out the things in that box…and don't you agree that having a phoenix will keep me safer than almost anything the Order can do?"

"I suppose you're right about your phoenix, but Voldemort…."

Growing impatient again, Harry raised his voice. "I can't live my life wondering what Voldemort's doing. Especially when no one tells me anything about him!"

Patient in the face of Harry's outburst, Dumbledore said, "We haven't kept you informed. Perhaps that was a mistake, but now…what do you want to know, Harry?"

Struggling to curb the anger in his voice, Harry asked, tight lipped, "What can he do with my blood?"

Dumbledore answered, "It's difficult to say for sure. It does mean that the Dursley's home may not offer the protection for you that it once did."

That news sounded cheerful to Harry, but his thoughts were far away from a summer on Privet Drive. Harry figured that without Snape to spy on Voldemort, good information had become difficult to obtain, but he wanted to know something -- anything. "What do you think Voldemort is planning next?" He looked at the Headmaster, half expecting him to say it wasn't any of his business.

"I don't know. We no longer have a reliable informant in his inner circle." Dumbledore began then he raised his hand before Harry could object. "But I am able to tell you that Voldemort has continued to approach all sorts of non-wizard magical communities, mostly those who might feel disenfranchised."

Harry remembered hearing somewhere that Fudge was trying to control the Goblins at Gringotts. "Is Gringotts safe?" he asked.

Dumbledore nodded. "Good British Goblins are utterly trustworthy, Gringotts will have nothing to do with a wizard of Voldemort's sort. He has nothing to offer them. But who can say anything about foreign Goblins? And of course, the dragons that appeared here on Halloween were most likely sent to test the Hogwarts defenses. I suspect that we'll see more of the same when the time comes."

"When the time comes?" Harry didn't like the sound of that.

Dumbledore spoke in a serious tone. "It seems inevitable that Voldemort will attack Hogwarts at some point. Nothing would terrify the wizarding world more."

An attack on the school would mean many of his classmates would be hurt or even killed. Harry considered Dumbledore's words for a few moments before answering. "Is it unavoidable? Maybe if I left school, Voldemort wouldn't attack here."

Hogwarts wasn't just an old castle to him, it was home and hearth and the first place he ever remembered feeling like he belonged. The school had been his refuge from the Dursley's, from a life where he never mattered. He couldn't stand the thought of anything happening to the castle or the to the people within.

For the first time, a glimmer of Dumbledore's trademark twinkle returned. "Nowhere is safer without you, Harry. Besides one of our main objectives is to protect you. You know what the prophecy said. Without you, Voldemort becomes unstoppable. We need to keep you safe."

But Harry was too caught up in worrying about his friends to listen. Stroking Aurora's feathers to calm himself, Harry added, "With her help, I think I can protect myself just about anywhere, but I can't make others safe. She left Ginny behind during the pub fight…"

Harry's thoughts ran to the promise of Myrddin's torch. It was supposed to be able to protect people — a lot of people. If he could only find some tanglewood, then he might have a chance to put the torch together. But he still wasn't sure he should tell Dumbledore about the book in his pocket.

The headmaster was so focused on keeping Harry safe that he might not listen. What if his search led him away from the safety of Hogwarts? Dumbledore would surely stop him. His best chance seemed to be to continue looking on his own, perhaps even going back to Hart Fell when the weather improved.

Harry kept all of these thoughts to himself. Standing to leave, he said, "I still think you should let me go after Snape and Malfoy. People won't feel safe, knowing that Malfoy is out there somewhere."

The headmaster studied him for a moment, then he said, "I'm sure you're right. This is just the sort of situation that may bring disagreement and disharmony." The Headmaster looked at Harry sadly. "But for now the safest thing is to wait. I know that you look to me for answers, Harry. Just as I suspect that some of your peers now look to you. But, when you are as old as I am, you begin to see that sometimes, the more you try to fix things, the more things fall apart."

To Be Continued…

A/N: Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

Nightwing 509: Thanks for reviewing so fast! I'll try to update faster now. Thanks for writing!

Lady of the Dragons2: Thanks for your lovely review! I think Harry and Ginny are perfect for each other, too. There will be more pranks. And I'm very sorry about the wait.

skeeter007: Yes, Ginny unfortunately left her Portkey in her cloak. I love the Bat Bogey thing. I wonder if JKR will come up with bigger and better Ginny hexes in Book 6. Thanks for reviewing!

Lourdes: Thanks for reviewing! Draco could be lost to the dark side. He could still go either way despite his rather callous comments under the influence of Snape's potion.

LunaLovegood61: Thanks for your nice comments. And thanks for taking the time to review!

Harry/Ginnyfan4ever: I have a vivid image in my head of you shaking the computer screen. I'm so sorry about the delay, but I want to point out that the cliff hanger in the chapter before this could have been much worse. Thanks for writing!

rosepetal13: I still really miss summer. It's seems long ago and far away now. Thanks for your kind review! I thought Malfoy had plenty of motivation to become a Death Eater because of his background. It's hard to show that since I'm trying to write the story primarily from Harry's point of view. Thanks for writing!

Makaveli3: Thanks for your kind comments. I should be able to update faster now. Thanks for reviewing!

Curlious: Sorry to leave it there for so long! Thanks for writing a review!

Retrieve the Melon: Sorry to make you wait so long. It was unavoidable. Thanks for reviewing!

Tooki: Draco did make a really stupid move, but in my mind, he did it because he was just that positive that he would get away with it. And he's just so good looking that he makes a good villain. Thanks for reviewing!

Preston78: Thanks for saying that! I will try to update soon.

Ted M. Hammett: Thanks for reviewing! I don't really like nasty cliff hangers either. The Draco thing was bad enough. And I suspected that I wouldn't be able to update for a while. Thanks for noticing.

Iluvatar: Thanks, I will!

athenakitty: The ossification hex had already begun to wear off on its own. Harry keeps most of what he's found in the scrolls and his book to himself. Thanks for reviewing!

Lady of Masbolle: I'm so sorry to hear about your hand! Myrddin means sea fort? Interesting… Thanks for writing a review!

Ginevra Potter: Thanks for reviewing and for your good wishes. I need all the luck I can get!

Lion of Gryffindor: I'm glad you liked the action scene. It was difficult to write it from Harry's point of view since Aurora pulled him to safety at the beginning of the fight. Thanks for writing a review!

Cobalt 45: Thanks for reviewing! You have some pretty good theories. It shows that you're really paying attention. I thought the ossification thing being really itchy was torture enough for now. We haven't heard the end of Malfoy in this story. I will try to update faster.

Kelly: Hello! Lovely to hear from you again! I'm glad you're still reading my story. This chapter had a short and sweet conversation between Harry and Dumbledore. Despite their initial intention to put their cards on the table, they still didn't completely confide in each other. Thanks for reviewing!

SillyGillie: Thanks for saying that! Harry and Aurora are beginning to communicate better. Thanks for all your kind words. Draco's fate is yet to be determined.

masterferret: You're right about the Auror's being able to heal her. Ginny just didn't stick around long enough. Thanks for writing a review!

GhostMagic19: I appreciate your comments. This chapter had the long overdue talk between Dumbledore and Harry. It just didn't go as well as it could have. Thanks for writing a review!

MrsSakuraPotter: Draco makes a good bad guy. Aurora's just focused on Harry so she gave no thought to anyone else. Good thing Harry went back for her in that pub. Thanks for writing a review! I should be able to post the next chapter soon.

James and Lily 4eva: Thanks for reviewing! This chapter was one to take stock and set up for the ending.

syntron: Poor Hedwig's jealous, what owl wouldn't be? Thanks for writing!

knbnnate: Thank you so much!

Brad: I'm flattered that you'd ask. What site? Thanks for writing!

MsMissProngs: I totally agree. They should make Hogsmeade off limits. Thanks for writing a review!

SilverWarrior: Draco may be just too perfect at being evil to change. Thanks for reviewing!

snort of laughter: I haven't stopped. I was just forced to take a break. Thanks for writing a review!

javier 55: Thanks for reviewing! I liked the Phoenix gone wild phase of the story myself.

mysticruby: Thanks for saying that! I'm sorry you've had to work a lot of hours, but thanks for taking the time to read and review my story!

Jack-A-Roe: Sorry about the fluff. In my defense, it was Valentine's Day. Snape has escaped Harry's clutches for the moment, as has Draco, but they'll both be back. Thanks for reviewing!

SeverusWife: You're a lucky woman, married to a Snape clone. I'm assuming that you meant that he looks like Alan Rickman sigh Thanks all your kind comments.

Harry9970: Hello, corwin! Draco _has_ been lurking evilly throughout my story. Thank you for noticing. He's shown his hand now. Thanks for writing!

Eyes of sky: Thanks! That's nice of you to say. Thanks for reviewing!

Lord Dreadnault: Great pen name! Thanks for your kind words and for taking the time to review.

Harrie: Your guess was 100 correct. Given a choice, I'd spend my time writing. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

wsanteim: Thanks for writing a review!

El Shabang: Thanks for your kind words in both of your reviews! I will keep updating. JKR never explained where Fawkes came from so who can say for sure. In the "Torch" story, Harry's summons stone is unique. Dumbledore had never heard of one. Luna was the only one with a guess.

KandiG85: Thanks for reviewing! I will keep writing.

Me: Thanks, I will.

KFelton: I'm so sorry that I had to take a break from writing this story. I will try to be faster now. Thanks for writing!

cariluv: Thanks for reviewing! Harry just isn't spending as much time with them, they're still his best friends. They are still a big part of his life.

Cynthia 1850: Thanks for saying that about Ron. Of course, he still has his moments of, but it only makes sense to let the characters grow up a little. Thanks for reviewing!

Harry James: Thanks for writing a review! By now I'm sure you've discovered a wealth of great stories on I highly recommend that you do "add a piece of your own." It's fun to write as well as read fanfiction. Hopefully it will tide us all over until JKR takes pity on us and publishes the real Book 6.

merlin's beard: Thank you. I will try. Thanks for reviewing!

Eggo Waffles: I love Arthurian legend, too, but I'm no scholar. Niniane is an earlier Welsh name for basically the same character that we see in the later Merlin stories. Since Myrddin is an old Welsh name for Merlin, I looked for the oldest, Welsh-est version of Nimue. When Niniane first appears in the stories, she is a priestess of Avalon. Thanks for writing!

parakletos: Thanks for reviewing! No one mentioned the Quidditch thing. Sorry. Thanks for letting me know.

Plesner: Thanks for reading and reviewing! Updates should be faster now.

muggleprincess7721: Thanks for saying that. I will continue and I appreciate the encouragement. Thanks for writing!

Torien: Thanks for your feedback. I'll try to work on the flow issues you mentioned. This is my first attempt to write fiction so there are bound to be some rough patches. Perhaps I should have started smaller, but I had an idea for a plot. I've really enjoyed writing the story so far. Thanks for reading and reviewing!

bassir: Thanks for saying that. I love Harry/ Ginny fics. Thanks for writing!

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AndyBlack23: Thanks for asking and for your encouragement. Thanks for reviewing!

CeDDD: Here it is. Thanks for writing!

Lord Venifarious: Thanks for your review!

Lily and James Potter: Of course you can use the lip gloss thing. Thanks for asking and good luck to you. Someone I know went to Trinity College in Carmarthen, Wales and the name of her dorm was Myrddin. She explained why and I started looking stuff up about Myrddin/ Merlin. I've always liked Merlin anyway. Thanks for writing a review!

david: I appreciate you kind words and encouragement. And, of course, you're right, it has been way too long. Thanks for reviewing!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	28. Schemes and Dreams

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks to all the people who reviewed! Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter.

Chapter 28  
Schemes and Dreams

Monday morning came around too soon. An overnight storm had brought a thick layer of powdery snow so Harry decided not to run. It had been ages since he'd had a lie in. He tried rolling over and pulling the covers over his head, but he couldn't go back to sleep.

He kept turning things over in his mind. Last night there had been no one to talk to. When he tried to mirror call Ginny, she was still busy with her study group, and he wasn't sure how Ron and Hermione would take the news about Malfoy's escape, so it was a relief they weren't around. After tossing and turning in bed for a while longer, he decided to simply give up and go to breakfast.

The other Gryffindor sixth years were still sleeping. Loud snoring noises were coming from Dean's closed bed curtains. Ron and Seamus were also breathing audibly. Neville, whose skin had faded to a slightly unnatural pink, was snarled up with his bedclothes.

Harry walked quickly through the quiet tower, stepping through the portrait hole without disturbing anyone. Outside in the corridor, a flash of fire heralded Aurora's arrival. Perhaps she was curious why they weren't running today. He gave her a treat and patted her head. While he whispered to her about the snowstorm keeping them from running, he added regretfully that it would prevent him from visiting Hagrid. Trilling a brief note, the beautiful phoenix Apparated the two of them to the doorstep of Hagrid's hut.

Although he hadn't intended for them to go there, he couldn't help but smile. She meant well.

"Thanks, Hagrid's gonna be thrilled." Although Harry had told him about his phoenix, he had yet to introduce them.

He knocked on the door of the hut, anticipating a warm greeting, but there was no answer. It began to snow again, this time in thick, heavy flakes. Disappointed, Harry began to walk back up the rapidly disappearing path to the castle with Aurora on his shoulder. He stopped when he heard a distant bark. It was difficult to see through the soft white flakes, but he thought he saw Fang emerge from the forest and bound toward him with Hagrid striding along behind him.

Apparently, Harry was easily identified despite the snow because, as he approached, Hagrid shouted, "Wait there, 'arry?" When he was close enough to see, he stared, mesmerized by the red and gold bird on Harry's shoulder.

Stomping his feet on the step to get the snow off his shoes, Harry suddenly wondered if he was intruding. Hagrid hadn't even invited them inside. Harry laughed to cover his discomfort and tried to explain. "I just whispered that I wished I could see you and she whisked us here…er…sorry if you're busy. We'll just be going."

Startled out of his reverie, Hagrid said, "Where're me manners. Come along in, now. Take a moment to warm up and have a cuppa. Why…yer not even dressed for the weather!"

Wearing his Hogwarts uniform, without a cloak, Harry was relieved to get inside the warm hut. It had been ages since he and Hagrid had a quiet talk. They settled in near the fire with their tea and conversed, mostly about their Magical Creatures class. Aurora stayed close to Harry as he settled into his chair -- perhaps because of the odd looking salamander-like creature in the cage next to it. But when Hagrid offered Aurora some ginger roots, she took them and perched on a rafter above them, next to the hodge-podge of empty cages that Hagrid had stored there.

Sitting down on the sofa, Hagrid dropped his hand down to gently rub Fang's head. Then, with a puzzled look on his face, Hagrid shoved his huge hand under the sofa cushion beneath him and pulled out something that looked suspiciously like a bone. He gave it to Fang, who began to gnaw on it hungrily, and said, "Ah…you've got a right fine pet there, 'arry."

"I'm not sure she's exactly a pet. She does just as she pleases." Despite that, he did feel a bond with the phoenix. He'd even come to rely on her presence in some ways. Yet Harry couldn't help wondering why Fawkes took directions from Dumbledore while Aurora had such a will of her own.

"A phoenix can be a tricky pet," Hagrid said, looking up at the bird with admiration. "But there's none more loyal. She'd lay down her life for yeh. That's sure. And she probably knows more 'bout what you're thinking than she lets on. They're very observant. Wait 'til yeh get ter know each other better."

As if she knew they were talking about her, the phoenix flew down and nudged Harry's hand. While he ruffled her head feathers fondly, she disappeared.

A little taken aback, Harry picked up his rather large mug of tea and took a sip. "See what I mean? I'm never going to get used to that. Oh…she's wonderful, don't misunderstand me. She's amazing and beautiful. I just wonder what Dumbledore does to…to communicate with Fawkes."

"Are yeh worried 'bout where she goes?" Hagrid asked.

Harry answered with a small smile, "Oh, I know where she goes…It's warm and green and she has a nest high in the trees. She's taken me there plenty of times…I just wonder why she takes off like that."

"Maybe she jus' don't like snow," Hagrid said, walking over to the hearth, as a cold wind rattled the frosty windows.

Watching Hagrid move the fire screen and stoke the blaze, Harry felt very relaxed. "Er…I know she makes me safe. It's just that maybe if she weren't so…unpredictable, the Headmaster would trust me more. I don't need to be locked up in the castle. I could help."

One thing seemed clear to Harry. If the Headmaster trusted him, he would have taken him up on his offer to pursue Snape. After all, he'd made the offer despite his own feelings of distrust toward the Potions Master. Dumbledore must know that.

Hagrid put another log on the fire and said, "It's no use yer makin' plans while you're s'posed to be a student. Yer day will come, but 'til then, you best do whatever Dumbledore tells you. He's…"

Interrupting him, Harry said, "What about Malfoy? He's supposed to be a student and yet he took the Dark Mark."

The half-giant shuddered at the mention of the Mark. "When a wizard goes Dark, no one can stop 'em. Best leave that business ter the Headmaster. He's only tryin' ter look out for yeh."

Then he shrugged and changed the subject. "Now that I think of it, I saw some dwarf juniper growin' down by that mossy spring in the forest." He took a long drink of his tea.

Wondering why that would be important, Harry waited patiently for Hagrid to keep going. When he didn't say anything more, Harry said, "That's nice."

Hagrid fingered a hole in his sleeve. "Nice! I should think yeh'd be happy…weren't yeh just moanin' 'bout looking for green wood fairies for the MacMillan boy. They like dwarf berries in the winter…course yeh already knew that."

Although the fairies were important, they could wait. Harry sensed there was something Hagrid wasn't telling him. "What else did you see in the woods this morning, Hagrid? What happened to your sleeve?" It looked like something had burned through.

"Oh…fire flies…as big as 'yer fist. They're breedin' now. Been pesterin' the Thestrals."

One of them obviously objected to Hagrid's presence in the woods.

"Fire flies…in a snowstorm?" Harry asked.

"Probably came to Hogwarts with them dragons." Hagrid gulped down the rest of his tea and stood up. "Well, best be off. I'm thinkin' of settin' up traps. Somethin's been stealin' food from the Thestrals." Laughing shortly, he said, "A course it's probably best not to bother Dumbledore with the Thestral's problems just now. He's that worried — what with no one hearin' from Professor Snape."

Of course, Harry pounced on that, practically spitting out his tea. "No one's heard from Snape?"

"Er…Maybe I shoudn' a said that. I thought yeh'd already know…Dumbledore jus' said that they haven't been able to contact him. Seemed real worried."

Hagrid's words made him wonder. If Snape were in some kind of trouble, Harry had an idea how he could help. Not that Snape ever helped him. It might not even work, but he could try. And it might go a long way to gaining Dumbledore's trust.

Harry must have looked worried because Hagrid tried to reassure him. "Don' be worryin' 'bout this, too, 'arry. The Order'll find Professor Snape all right."

Offering to help him with the traps later, Harry took off toward the school. He climbed to the owlery with a quill and some parchment borrowed from Hagrid. While it took some coaxing, he eventually convinced Hedwig to take a message for him. Now he'd have to hurry back to Gryffindor to collect his books before class.

When he arrived in the common room, he found a crowd gathered around the notice board. Battling his way through the throng of students, Harry reached Ginny's side. "What's so interesting?" he asked, gratefully catching a whiff of her shampoo as the group jostled to make room for him.

Ginny smiled a greeting and linked her arm through his. Tacked up on the notice board in the common room, alongside the lost and found notices and the Quidditch practice schedule, was an official looking notice announcing that all Hogsmeade trips were canceled until further notice.

Colin Creevey said, "I guess that's their way of saying stay in the castle and be good."

Harry, who'd felt cooped up all winter, silently agreed. Colin wasn't alone in voicing his displeasure. There were several grumblings and groans throughout the crowd despite the recent attack in the village.

Sighing, Ginny said, "Hopefully, it won't be forever."

Pulling her arm, Harry led her away from the crush of the crowd and whispered, "There's more to this. Malfoy's disappeared along with Snape."

Ginny gasped and said, "Wait until Hermione finds out. She'll go spare."

"And you think Ron will be cheerful?" Leading her over to the window, he pleaded with her. "Stay with me while I tell them."

While Ginny made a face that said she wasn't looking forward to that conversation any more than he, she didn't argue. With Harry's hands holding hers to his chest and his eyes pleading so intently, she wasn't difficult to convince. Actually, she looked like she might kiss him right there in the middle of the crowded common room. After a moment, she broke away, muttering about waking Hermione.

Seamus walked down the stairs as she walked off, nodding knowingly at the sight of Harry and Ginny looking so intense so early in the morning.

"So things are finally heating up with you and Ron's sister." Seamus winked at Harry. "Sure…and it's a secret that's safe with me. You wouldn't want to be speaking of it with Ron around. He might not take too kindly to his little sister…you know…"

Interrupting this rather appalling speech from Seamus, Harry said, "Er…I think you've got the wrong idea."

But Seamus' reaction was to give him another wink, then say rather loudly, "Ah…good morning, Ron." Taking off in the direction of Lavender and the portrait hole, Seamus gave Harry one last knowing smile.

Looking clueless as he stood at the bottom of the stairs, Ron asked, "What's with him?"

Harry shook his head and rolled his eyes to indicate that Seamus was just being weird. "He's got some wrong ideas. But I'm glad you're up, Ron. I have something to tell you, but we have to wait for Hermione."

Not too happy about waiting, Ron said, "Couldn't you tell us while we eat breakfast?" As if to punctuate his plaintive question, his stomach rumbled.

Arriving with Hermione in tow, Ginny said, "Your stomach, honestly, Ron. Some things are more important…and…" She dropped her voice to a whisper and continued, "We can't talk about this around everyone."

Slipping underneath Ron's arm so he'd have it draped over her shoulder, Hermione asked quietly, "Is this about Malfoy?"

Harry smiled at her. "Can't get anything past you. Yes…it seems that Malfoy has fled the castle with Snape chasing after him," Harry answered quickly.

Hermione began to breathe heavily. Then she exploded with righteous indignation. "How? I don't see how Dumbledore could have let this happen! I mean…a teenage wizard, without a wand! He couldn't just vanish from a locked dungeon by himself." Her lips drew into a tight line like she had more to say, but was trying to control herself.

Eyes narrowed, Ron asked, "How do we know Snape's chasing him? Maybe he helped him escape?"

In a quiet but agitated voice, Harry said, "I really don't think so…Snape _was_ trying to take Malfoy's side, but he was also helping Dumbledore." He tried to keep his voice low although the common room was nearly cleared out by now. Most people had left for breakfast before their argument got underway.

Still red faced and indignant, Hermione hissed, "Malfoy'd need help from someone who could get past the wards. It couldn't have been a student. You know it as well as I do, Harry."

Ron nodded and pulled her closer, squeezing her arm to comfort her.

Looking from one friend to the other, Harry said, "I agree with you…it's just…I don't see what we can do about this. I offered to go after them. Dumbledore didn't like that plan."

It was hard to see his best friends so upset. Ginny worked her hand into his. He clasped it gratefully.

Forgetting where they were, Ron said heatedly, "Since when are you content to just do what Dumbledore wants? Malfoy could have killed Hermione! He could have killed you! He tried to hand my sister over to You Know Who! Thanks to Dumbledore, Malfoy could show up again…anytime…anywhere. How can you be so calm?"

Yet Harry wasn't calm; he'd been fighting against the anger rising inside him ever since being in the dungeon with Malfoy. Everything seemed out of control. He knew the façade of composure that he struggled to maintain would crumble if he let go the way his friends were doing. In a deadly quiet voice, he said, "I'm as upset as you are…it's just, I'm not sure venting my anger will be helpful right now."

They all fell silent as a couple of first years walked by. When the younger students had gone, Harry continued, "Aren't you the one that always says we should trust Dumbledore, Hermione?" He felt a little hypocritical, knowing that the Headmaster would probably not approve of the letter he'd just sent, and he was sure that his friends wouldn't.

Realizing they weren't convinced, Harry shrugged and looked at Ginny for ideas.

Delivering him for the moment, Ginny said, "We can't figure this out now or we'll all be late to class…and Harry can't be late or he'll have to give himself detention."

Harry ignored Hermione and Ron's protests and let himself be pulled away, thinking maybe his day was looking up. A few moments alone with his girlfriend seemed like a great plan, but she quickly abandoned him on the other side of the portrait hole, calling out that she'd see him later as she rushed off to her Muggle Studies class.

Feeling a little let down by her abrupt departure, Harry ate a hurried breakfast alone. The fast-paced Defense classes took all of his attention throughout the morning, and cleaning up after class made Harry late to lunch. He mirror called Ginny to apologize, but found that she'd eaten early so her study group could meet with Professor McGonagall.

As he walked toward the Gryffindor table, Harry was relieved to see Ron and Hermione sitting across from each other, until he saw the grim look on their faces.

Ron grumbled a welcome, but Hermione started in on him as soon as he'd taken a seat. "I just don't see how we can sit by and let this happen!" She slapped the table with her palm. "He must have had help getting out! At the very least someone must have smuggled in a wand. You've worked on the castle wards, Harry. Could a student get through them?" She continued in this vein for several minutes.

When she finally stopped to draw breath, Harry said, "You're right…about everything. I agree with you, Hermione."

It really bothered Harry to see her so upset. He tried to find words to reassure her. "And you want to feel like you're doing something. I know because I feel the same way. Except we're not in charge. Dumbledore is. If we get in the middle of what he's doing, we'll makes things worse." He rationalized that one little letter didn't really constitute meddling.

Hermione examined Harry's face closely, her eyes boring into his.

"You aren't taking Legilimency lessons, are you?" Harry asked her suspiciously, then gave out a short, nervous laugh.

Ignoring his attempt at humor, she said slowly, "I see your point. We don't want to get in the way of the Order." She seemed to come to some sort of conclusion as she spoke. "_So_…we should plan carefully. We wouldn't want to go stumbling into some sort of a trap at Malfoy Manor."

"Malfoy Manor?" Harry repeated, hoping he hadn't heard her right.

Waving her hand in front of her like she was wiping away her words, Hermione frowned. "I'm just thinking out loud, Harry."

"Sh…" Ron said, narrowing his eyes as he watched Hermione.

Ron looked pale and unhappy. Harry hadn't seen him like this since they'd found the cure for Hermione. He'd watched his two best friends become closer than ever through that ordeal. Helping himself to some soup, Harry wondered briefly if Ron agreed with Hermione or if he was just worried because she was so upset.

Finally Hermione broke her silence. First she looked at Ron, then Harry, then she said, "All right…I know it wouldn't be smart to chase after him — especially when we don't know what the Order is doing." She shook her head sadly. "But what else can we do? As long as he's out there, he'll try to hurt one of us again. He will. I just know it."

Harry couldn't believe this was the same girl who'd tried to talk him out of going to the Department of Mysteries last spring. Trying to reason with her, Harry said, "We don't have any idea what will happen next. We should just wait and see how things go. Snape could bring him back tomorrow."

Incredulous, Ron finally spoke. "I can't believe you'd even think that's possible. Snape's gone back to his own kind."

Harry couldn't really blame Ron for thinking that way. It was certainly his first conclusion, but now that he'd thought it over, Harry was sure it wasn't true. Snape had been cooperating with Dumbledore down in the dungeon. He'd definitely spiked Malfoy's tea. Harry was convinced that helping Snape might actually lead to recapturing Malfoy without any more people being hurt.

Still, Harry knew talking about Snape wasn't going to make Hermione feel safer or dissuade her from the wild scheme she was concocting. He watched as she swirled her chicken noodle soup without eating. Then she surprised him.

"This is what our lives are going to be like." She spoke without anger, quietly, with the confidence of someone who had thought her words through completely. "We aren't going to graduate and lead safe, comfortable little lives."

Harry noticed Ron blushing. It began with his ears and spread over his face. But he listened carefully, without interrupting. Of course, Harry had never led a safe, comfortable life, but he knew what she meant. He wanted that, too -- someday.

Putting her napkin on the table like she was finished with lunch, Hermione continued to explain. "I mean, I've always dreamed we'd live our lives like my parents — only with magic. But it's not going to be like that. We'll always be fighting this war because there'll always be someone — whether it's Voldemort or Draco -- out there who could take our lives away."

Ron laid his hand palm up on the table in front of her and said, "We won't be fighting alone."

"And we'll win," Harry said, resolutely. He patted her shoulder to comfort her.

She reached forward and took Ron's hand for a moment. Then she put her napkin back in her lap and picked up her spoon. Lifting a bit of soup toward her mouth before swallowing, she said, "Not that I'm giving up on recapturing Draco ourselves."

At these words, Harry groaned inwardly, but his attention was drawn to a group of fifth years at the entrance to the Great Hall. Ginny was among them, toting an extra bag of books and looking slightly tousled.

Colin, Allison and her other study group friends kept walking, as she plunked down heavily next to Harry. Oblivious to the strained faces around her she said, "McGonagall has got to be stopped! She assigned us five feet of parchment on Invertebrate Transfiguration and told us there would be a review test at the end of the week. Then she called our study group into her office to give us an extra assignment. "

Glad of the distraction, Harry sympathized with her. Pouring her a glass of juice, he said, "The O.W.L.'s are really tough. You need to pace yourself."

She took the goblet gratefully and continued. "I'm not the only one beginning to feel the pressure." Leaning closer and grinning, she said. "Colin's worried his hair is thinning from too much stress."

Ron and Hermione were too distracted by their own quiet conversation to listen properly. They just heard Colin's name and looked in his direction. Harry threw his head back and laughed, looking down the table to where Colin was sitting.

Ginny said reprovingly, "Don't everybody look…he'll know I'm talking about him."

She began to load a plate with Rhubarb Crumble. Floating over with her usual serenity, Luna sat down on the other side of Ginny. Everyone smiled a greeting to her, but she didn't speak for a moment.

When Harry was about to pay attention to his lunch again, Luna finally asked, "Has anyone seen Neville?"

Without looking up from his food, Ron shook his head.

Harry shrugged and answered, "Not since before breakfast." He had a vivid picture in his mind of Neville sprawled out on his bed. "Maybe he slept in," Harry suggested as he brought a forkful of chicken toward his mouth.

Gazing around as if she might see Neville materialize out of thin air, Luna seemed confused. "Someone was in the Greenhouse this morning. I thought it might've been him."

While Ginny and Luna began to discuss McGonagall's latest project, Hedwig glided toward Harry. She landed in front of him gracefully and formally extended her message bearing leg.

Ignoring the letter, Harry held out his juice for her to drink and petted her soft, white head. He murmured softly to her and finally removed the letter. Hedwig took off almost immediately, making Harry wonder if she was truly over meeting Aurora. Anyway, she'd taken the letter for him this morning, and apparently had waited for a reply.

Tuning back into the table conversation, Harry wasn't surprised to hear Hermione discussing more plans for recapturing Draco while Ron listened patiently.

Pushing her plate away, Ginny looked at the letter that Harry was still holding in his hand. "Who's it from?" she asked.

"Seems to be from Remus." He held it out for her to see, but he didn't have time to explain. Lunchtime was almost over. Harry looked at the faculty table and noticed that Dumbledore was missing. Reluctantly, Harry excused himself, and went to look for him.

The Headmaster was in his office, looking out the window across the grounds. When Harry knocked, he called to him to enter, but he made no further greeting as the teenager came in. Not particularly wanting to intrude on the venerable Professor's reverie, Harry silently joined him at the window.

Outside, Harry could see Fawkes stretching his wings across the snow covered hills surrounding the castle. The day was still overcast. Mists hung low over the forest, like steam rising. The skies looked forbidding.

Without acknowledging Harry, Dumbledore broke the silence. "I remember when Fawkes first came to me. It made me feel…indestructible. Nevertheless life has taught me that we are all mortal."

Harry took the Professor's words as a warning. "I know what you're getting at…and I will be careful, but you know as well as I do -- I'll have to fight eventually."

Dumbledore turned his attention to the young man in front of him. "Is that what brought you here?"

Handing him the letter he received at lunch, Harry said, "No…I just received this note from Remus. Only I know it's not from him. He's at Wolfhaven…I charmed it." Harry mustered his courage; he knew his gesture could be taken as a help or a hindrance. "Only Sn…Professor Snape could read it properly."

"Of course. Very clever, Harry." Dumbledore held the parchment out toward Harry expectantly.

Dutifully pulling his wand and uttering an incantation, Harry watched the words on the page transform.

Mr. P-----:

Please relay this message to the proper authorities. Your assumptions about my current pursuits are quite correct. However, I do not require any assistance. Normal channels are being watched.

Your "help" is not necessary. In the future, a less conspicuous form of communication would be appreciated.

Prof. S-----

Dumbledore mused calmly, "Alas, we can't take Professor Snape at his word here. For all we know, this could have been written under duress. He is most likely in great need of some assistance." Peering over the half-moon glasses on the end of his nose, Dumbledore said, "I know you meant well, Harry…but there's a reason we generally don't send owls to our operatives…"

Reddening, Harry said, "I know, sir…I didn't really think it through. I just…" He didn't know what to say. Of course, he realized now that a large, snowy white owl might not have been the best choice of messenger. He was lucky the Headmaster wasn't furious with him.

Shaking his head as he examined the letter closely, Dumbledore said, "You wanted to help…and I must admit to some surprise. And this _is_ his handwriting…unmistakably."

Harry had to admit the writing was distinctive.

The Headmaster gave Harry a long, appraising look. "I will also say that I am pleased to have this response from Professor Snape. Although I was certain he was only following the established procedure, we haven't heard from him through the normal channels and it's had me a bit worried. But I must insist that you let the Order handle this -- "

Interrupting him, Harry said, "I know…I'm sorry. I hope…." He broke off there, not wanting to make things worse by explaining things fully.

"All the same, Harry. I want your promise not to pursue Professor Snape or Mr. Malfoy. No more owls. Leave this to the Order."

Seeing that the Headmaster looked very serious, Harry agreed, but he decided to keep quiet about his other purpose in sending the letter and, of course, Hermione's plan to raid Malfoy Manor. No reason to make Dumbledore more worried than he already was. And after all, both would probably come to nothing.

Harry made his way to Greenhouse Three just in time for class. N.E.W.T. level Herbology was a large group so he had to stand near the door. The class was gathered around a small Cracklegum tree in the center of the room where Madam Sprout, wearing protective gear, was preparing to harvest some sap.

Harry was surprised that Terry Boot was assisting, since Madam Sprout usually chose Neville. Everyone seemed pretty excited as Harry looked around at his classmates. Crabbe and Goyle stood near the tree, looking nervous.

The class gave a shout as Madam Sprout poked the tree with a spigot and the viscous liquid emitted a short spray before beginning to flow into the carefully charmed rubber drum. The sap looked an awful lot like maple syrup except it snapped and crackled with little jolts of electricity.

Class let out early, and Harry beat a path to the castle door, trying to get out of the bitter wind that was blowing snow in his face. The school poltergeist appeared out of nowhere as Harry climbed the stairs to Gryffindor. Peeves' pointy hat was askew as he hovered over the students and sprayed them with a watering can, singing some silly song about a rabbit and a garden.

Conjuring an umbrella as he passed underneath, Harry hurried past, hoping to find Ginny in the library before his fencing lesson.

Harry never made it to the library. On his way up the stairs, he met his fencing instructor coming down, and they decided to begin sparring early. Rhys didn't seem in the mood for much conversation. In fact, he looked tired and drawn, but it didn't affect his fencing. He came at Harry with everything he had. Harry was grateful for the long, exhausting session. It meant he didn't have to think about anything but the blade in Rhys' hand.

By the time Harry had eaten a lonely dinner and climbed the stairs, his feet felt heavy. The common room was busy, full of students hard at work. If he'd wanted a spot to study, he should have arrived much earlier. He knew Ginny was probably busy with her study group in the library, but he was surprised that Ron and Hermione weren't around.

Since there was no place for him to spread out his books, Harry retreated upstairs. Outside the door to the sixth year's dorm, he found Hermione and most of his roommates standing in a nervous group. They were all talking at once.

Turning his attention to Harry, Seamus warned, "Don't go in there…it's haunted."

Hermione threw her hands up in exasperation and said, "Of course it's haunted, Seamus. This is Hogwarts. The ghosts have the run of the place. But there haven't been any new ghosts for decades…there must be another explanation."

"I still say it's a boggart," Ron said, grimacing and folding his arms over his chest as if that should be the last word. As the group had quieted down, Harry could hear a distinct moaning noise coming from behind the dormitory door.

Pulling his wand, Dean said, "Wands ready!"

"Wait!" Hermione said. "If it's a boggart, who here is afraid of a mummy?"

Dean put his hand on the doorknob and began to turn it. "Well…I'm scared of it so maybe it's me."

Harry must have looked puzzled because she explained, "When Seamus went in there earlier, he was chased out by a figure wrapped in white bandages."

Shivering slightly, Seamus added, "And moaning like a banshee!"

Wondering if Seamus' boggart figure had shifted from a banshee to a mummy in recent years, Harry pulled his wand and joined Dean by the door. With a nod, Dean pushed the door open. As expected, the group was greeted by a figure, wrapped in white and moaning. Dean yelled, "_Riddikulus!_" But it had no effect.

Ron stepped forward with his wand and waited expectantly for the mummy to change into a spider. All the boggarts he'd ever met had morphed into giant spiders. This one just stood still and moaned.

"Oh…move over," Hermione said, exasperated.

As she stepped closer to the mummy, Ron said, "Careful!"

But she didn't pay any attention, instead she reached a hand out and put it on the mummy's shoulder. "Neville?" she called. "Is that you?"

While his words were muffled by the sheet surrounding his head, everyone could understand Neville's nod.

Someone made the lamps brighter as she began to unwind the fabric surrounding his head, but it was a losing battle. The moment she pulled a piece loose, it somehow wound around some other part of him. In the brighter light, they could see that the "mummy" was covered head to toe in sheets and towels.

Harry stepped forward, and said, "Stand back, Hermione…and cover your eyes for a moment." She complied quickly. Harry pointed his wand at Neville and uttered a spell to rip off his sheets. Just as Harry had expected, Neville's pajamas came off with the sheets so he handed him the closest thing, the school robe he'd been wearing.

Seamus let out a low whistle and said, "Whoa…you'll have to teach me that one, Harry. That spell has…possibilities."

Ignoring what Seamus was implying and Ron's face, which was fighting between distrust and confusion, Harry said, "You can look now, Hermione."

She rushed to Neville's side. His hair was wild and disheveled, and he was inhaling large gulps of air. While the important parts were covered, he was still struggling with the twisted sleeves of Harry's school robe.

"Oh, you poor thing," she said. "How long have you been like this?"

Neville let out a long sigh. "I woke up all bunched up in the sheets and blankets…and everyone'd already left. And someone left a stack of towels on the chair by the door. Then I couldn't get out of the room because my hands were too covered with fabric to be any use…and…and no one could hear me shout…I guess."

None of them blamed Neville for being upset. He must have been trapped in sheets and such since before breakfast. The question still remained, though, of exactly how he'd provoked the bedclothes into attacking him.

Dean and Seamus seemed a bit embarrassed as they muttered how sorry they were. Then they went about the business of setting out parchment and books on their desks, presumably preparing to study.

Making himself comfortable on his bed, Ron said, "Sorry, Neville. If we hadn't been so busy today, someone would have been up here long before this."

Harry pulled an empty chair into the middle of the room so Neville could sit down. "Everyone's been wondering where you were. Sprout harvested the Cracklegum sap in Herbology this afternoon. I should have come to check on you. Sorry."

Fighting the sleeve of Harry's robe which was clinging and twisting around him like plastic wrap, Neville groaned and said, "I was afraid of that."

"And…have you any idea why this is happening?" Hermione asked. "Did someone curse you?"

Glancing sideways at Harry, Neville shook his head and explained, "Madam Pomfrey's neutralizing potion must have worn off sometime in the night because I couldn't get the stupid sheets off of me when I woke up."

Flipping her brown hair behind her shoulders, Hermione pulled a chair up next to Neville like she was ready to grill him for answers. "But neutralizing potion is mostly used to counteract the effects of plants. Did you get into something poisonous?"

Before Neville could answer, Harry said, "I think we better get you back to the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey probably has more of that potion."

As Neville stood up unsteadily, a pillowcase from Ron's bed flew toward him and wrapped itself around his face and neck. He pulled it off and it immediately twisted around his arm. Ignoring it, Neville said, "Maybe we could swing by the kitchens on the way. I'm starving."

"Does this have anything to do with you and Luna turning purple?" Hermione asked, her eyes narrowing on him as she reached over and tugged on the pillowcase. Every attempt to remove it resulted in it wrapping around him somewhere else.

Before Neville could answer, Seamus shouted, "Maybe his sheets are hexed or something. The curse of the bed linens! Careful when you go to bed tonight, Ron. It looks like yours could be next." He looked around the room, grinning as though he'd made a fine joke.

Dean laughed with him.

Annoyed at Seamus' suggestion, Ron nonetheless stared at his bed as though it might turn on him at any moment.

Hermione continued to try to remove Ron's pillowcase until Neville shouted, "Stop!" crossing his arms in frustration. "It's not helping, Hermione. Just leave it. And you don't have to worry about your bedclothes, Ron. All right? I've been cursed…but it was the tangleberries."

Rolling her eyes, Hermione said, "Strictly speaking, you cannot be cursed by berries or any other plant for that matter --" She stopped as she caught the look Ron was giving her.

Harry patted the white cotton on Neville's arm to reassure him. "We'll get you some help."

"What are tangleberries?" Ron asked, taking Neville's other side protectively.

Hermione sighed in frustration, but she let Neville explain.

"Luna and I've been working on an experiment…grafting a tangleberry bush to a holly tree so we could see if we could grow some tanglewood. It was supposed to be for you, Harry." Neville went on to describe how the berries had exploded during the grafting process. He'd jumped in front of Luna as the berries began to quiver and shake, only to be showered with purple juice when they finally burst.

Without seeing Neville's facial expression, Harry could tell that his friend was sincere. He was touched that Neville and Luna had gone to so much trouble in an effort to help him-- not to mention the pain and suffering when the experiment had gone wrong. The only time he ever remembered speaking to Neville about the tanglewood was on the train last Christmas. Of course, Harry thought about it every day. He still carried the book with him.

Suddenly remembering Draco Malfoy's taunts about thinking everything revolved around himself, Harry said, "You shouldn't waste your time on me."

"I…I just wanted to help," Neville said, sounding hurt. "Things always come down to you, Harry. When you showed me the tanglewood tree in your book, I knew they didn't exist. But…Luna and I thought…we might be able to simulate something with the same properties."

Feeling even worse at the thought that he'd made Neville think he was ungrateful, Harry said, "I really appreciate it…but we still need to find some of that potion for you." Holding Neville's arm, Harry asked, "Can you walk all right?"

"I don't know. Things just cling and curl around me."

"And what's this stuff Madam Pomfrey gave you?" Ron asked as they walked through the common room. Flanked by Harry and Ron, with Hermione walking behind, no one seemed to notice that Neville was slightly underdressed.

Sighing heavily, Neville answered, "She gave me a bottle of potion that was supposed to last for days, but I finished it off last night…I know it's hard to tell, but I wanted to get rid of the purple splotches all over my face before class. The potion seemed to help." He dropped his voice to a whisper. "I didn't want Luna to see me like that."

Very matter-of-factly, Hermione said, "Oh…Luna wouldn't mind."

Despite the bright pink skin tone Neville was still sporting, Ron nodded and announced emphatically, "The purple is completely gone."

Harry also tried to sound positive. "That's sorted then. We'll go get some food for you while Madam Pomfrey figures out what to do."

On the other side of the portrait hole, Hermione left for her prefect rounds. As they escorted Neville down the stairs to the infirmary, Harry exacted a promise from Neville to show him the tangleberry bush experiment the next day.

When Ron and Harry returned to Gryffindor, the common room wasn't as crowded. They settled in near the fire to get their school work done despite the fact that a group of second years were playing Exploding Snap nearby. One of them kept blowing large, unbreakable bubbles with his gum.

They worked in silence. Harry finished an essay, then stretched out on the sofa to read a book about tracking charms that he'd borrowed from Moody.

Crookshanks brushed past Ron legs, then jumped up and settled in next to Harry.

Ron didn't talk much, although he sighed frequently while he was writing. Finally, he said, out of the blue, "Do you reckon she _really_ expects us to go haul Malfoy back here?"

Not sure what to say, Harry shifted his gaze to the fire. "Maybe," he said cautiously, thinking about his promise to Dumbledore.

Sighing heavily, Ron said, "You know…she made me check Crabbe and Goyle's left forearms before class this morning?"

Harry couldn't help it. The thought of Ron sneaking up on the lumbering Slytherins was too much for him. He fought it for a moment, then he gave in and laughed.

Smiling himself, Ron explained how Hermione cast a trip hex, while he cast a spell to push up their sleeves. "Then Hermione made a big show of helping them collect their things — like she wasn't the reason they were scattered all over the floor in the first place."

Harry stopped laughing as he remembered his conversation with Hermione. From what little he'd seen of her that day, she seemed determined to go after Malfoy. He couldn't let her go alone, but if Harry went against his promise to Dumbledore and chased after Malfoy with Hermione, he'd never trust him again.

After a long silence, Harry finally said, "We'll have to help her if it comes down to it."

"I don't care about Malfoy…I mean, I'm angry, but…I just want her to be safe," Ron said. Then he shrugged, and let the conversation fade away. Harry's thoughts drifted to Ginny. He hadn't seen much of her today and he missed her. Of course, since it was after curfew, she was now across the room with the Gryffindor contingent of her study group, but still...

As Harry's mind wandered, Ron stood up and said, "Think I'll catch up with Hermione on her prefect rounds."

Harry nodded absent mindedly in response and tried to turn his attention back to reading. The words were dancing on the page in front of him while his thoughts wandered to the Burrow last summer. How simple life had been for him there -- no intrigues, no mysteries. He'd spent his days racing around on a broom or swimming in the pond, with Ginny and Ron for company.

He watched her now, slumped over her books. Colin appeared to be answering questions. Her head was propped up with her hand, her long red hair falling in a curtain as she leaned over an open book. Then an image came unbidden into his mind…Ginny stretched out on a low branch over the pond, dangling her hand into the water. She'd been telling him a funny story, but he'd forgotten what that was. But the sight of her, relaxed and cheerful, lingered in his mind as he stared unseeing at his book. And the feeling he had then, of being happy and at his ease, came flooding back.

He couldn't imagine having enough nerve to tell her how much those days at the Burrow meant to him, but he hazarded another look over at her study group. She looked tired as she listened to Colin. She stirred in her seat and stretched then she picked up a parchment and began to speak. Colin said something that made her smile.

Harry looked away, wishing he could hear what they were saying. He tried to refocus on his book, but it was difficult.

The last of the exploding snap players had left the common room long before, the remnants of their blue Droobles bubbles floating to the ceiling and staying there. The fire burned lower, and Harry dozed on the sofa, but Ginny's study group persevered.

As the grandfather clock struck midnight, Ginny noticed that the common room had cleared out. Colin continued to speak, but she was getting too tired to listen. Allison was slumped over her books, snoring softly, with a piece of parchment stuck to her face. And Harry…she could see his mismatched sock-covered feet sticking off the end of the sofa, but she couldn't tell if he was awake or asleep.

Even though they'd only been meeting for a month, spending so much time with her study group was wearing thin. She was somewhat immune to Luna's constant stream of wild notions, but Colin fussed with his hair whenever he thought no one was looking, and Allison asked the same questions over and over. It was beginning to annoy her.

She wished she hadn't sworn off pranking yesterday. In her heart she knew she'd feel better if she could turn Colin's hair purple when he wasn't looking and maybe make Allison's voice sound like a duck whenever she repeated herself. Of course, she couldn't do that to her study companions, but a girl could dream. She smiled at the thought.

On the other side of the study table, Colin bent closer to the parchment in his hands, squinting in concentration. He blinked rapidly, as though willing his eyes to focus.

"Shouldn't you be off to bed by now, Colin?" She dropped her voice although no one was around to overhear them. "I mean…I thought you needed your beauty sleep," she said, looking meaningfully at his hair.

"Right," Colin muttered, hastily gathering his books. "I…we'll have to pick this up again tomorrow. Forgive me?"

"Don't give it another thought. Sleep is important…" Ginny shook Allison, who woke up a start. When they'd all disappeared up their respective stairs, Ginny walked over to find Harry stretched out with his book floating in the air above him.

Without looking up from his reading, he said, "So you finally got them to leave."

Harry looked melted into the sofa. His expression seemed a little smug, so Ginny said, "I'm turning in, too, Harry. Good night, then."

When she turned to leave, Harry let the hovering book fall to the floor and sat up, "Wait…is that any way to say good night?"

She glanced over her shoulder at him, and slowed her steps. He hurried after her. She stopped when she felt his hands on her shoulders.

"I've wanted to see you all day," he said, his voice so close to her ear that she could feel his breath.

Shrugging slightly, but not pulling away, Ginny said, "Oh, Harry. We saw each other today."

She knew what he meant. Seeing each other in passing wasn't the same, but while she wanted to be with Harry, she wanted to be a healer someday, too. And that wasn't going to happen unless she studied hard.

"Not alone…" He whispered.

"It takes a lot of O.W.L.'s to become a healer." She leaned into his hands. His gentle touch sent a tingle down her spine.

Beginning to massage her shoulders and neck, Harry said softly, "You're going to be the best, but…stay up for a while."

Ginny gave into the feeling of his hands gently rubbing her neck and shoulders, thinking that Harry was making a fine start at healing her aching muscles. She dropped her head forward and gave a murmur of appreciation.

With that small noise of encouragement, he pulled Ginny around to face him. His bright green eyes loomed large as he pressed his forehead to hers, and said, "I really hate the O.W.L.'s," before kissing her slowly.

Ginny laughed softly and let him pull her over to the sofa. With a wave of his hand, Harry revived the fire in the hearth and sat down with his arm settled over her shoulder. She felt his face brush against her hair, then he said, "Want some cocoa or something?"

Once he'd conjured cocoa with marshmallows, they talked, mostly about her day. She told him what Professor Flitwick had said about her becoming a healer, even though she knew she'd told him about it before. He listened anyway, only interrupting her to ask a few questions. She finished her drink and leaned against his chest, reveling in his scent.

Snuggling against him felt nice and cozy, but Ginny suddenly wasn't all that tired. They had the common room to themselves for the moment, but her brother and Hermione could be back any time. She slipped out from under his arm and turned to face him, taking a moment to drink in the sight of him. Leaning forward, she kissed him and let all the remaining tension of her day dissolve as she molded herself against him.

He sank back into the sofa, taking her along with him. She felt his fingers wind into the hair at the nape of her neck. For a while, she lost her mind as a feeling of warmth and well being washed over her.

Just as she was wondering vaguely how her hair had become loose, the portrait hole opened. Ginny froze when she heard Ron's voice speaking between kissing noises.

"I don't know, Hermione…someone could have been…up there…Maybe we should go back and have another look around…Can't have anyone…snogging after curfew."

Out of the corner of her eye, Ginny could see Ron kissing Hermione as they walked one step at a time into the common room. In a moment they would notice they weren't alone. She silently willed Harry to do something.

Harry must have been thinking along the same lines because, without moving a muscle, he cast the Disillusionment spell, making them blend in with their surroundings.

Ginny's lips stilled near Harry's throat as she felt the cold from the spell slip down her spine. Now she just hoped that the others didn't decide to sit down on the sofa. They were in for a surprise if they did.

Hermione broke off their kiss and answered with a giggle, "Don't be silly, Ron…we're the only one's snogging."

Ron's head was bent toward her neck as Hermione kept talking. "Of course, if anyone's really on the astronomy tower at this hour, they're simply freezing themselves. I mean…it's overcast. Not a star --"

Ron cut off the rest of their conversation with a goodnight kiss.

Sighing in relief as Ron and Hermione disappeared up their respective stairways, Harry released them both from the chameleon spell. "Why is life so complicated?" he asked, running a hand through his impossibly ruffled hair as he sat up.

Standing up and straightening her clothes, Ginny grinned, "Ah…someday, we'll look back at moments like these and laugh. At least that's what Mum says."

Harry tucked a strand of her long red hair behind her ear. "What else does your Mum tell you?" he asked.

"Let's not talk about Mum any more," she said, tilting her head up to kiss him soundly.

"You brought her up," Harry said, pulling back and taking her hand.

Ginny followed him to the bottom of the stairs where they said goodnight.

Harry watched until she was out of sight, wondering how she did it, changed a tired, irritating, frustrating day into a pleasant memory. He'd file it away, like that image of her at the Burrow, so he'd have something to hold on to when things got bad.

To Be Continued…

A/N: Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

Lord Dreadnault: Thanks for your review. I'm trying to speed up!  
**El Shabang:** Thanks. The Malfoys seem really dysfunctional in canon so I could see either Lucius or Narcissa involving Draco with the Death Eaters. They might see it as giving their son a chance to grasp power. Yes, there will be more references to Merlin in this story. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Lady of the Dragons 2:** Draco's character in canon could still go either way although I think JKR has said somewhere that she won't redeem him. We'll just have to wait and see. Also, there is more to discover about the place Aurora takes Harry. As for Harry and Dumbledore, they are both trying, in their own way. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Cobalt 45: **You saw right through me on that one! Neville and Luna were trying to make some tanglewood, but suffered some unpleasant side effects. Thanks for writing!  
**eyes of sky:** Thanks for your review! Wales is lovely, the sort of place that stirs the imagination. And, you're right, Harry does need to start listening to Dumbledore…  
**athenakitty: **First they'll have to catch Draco before they can decide what to do with him. Thanks for writing!  
**Deathzealot: **Thanks for your kind words! I'll try to write faster.  
**Lourdes1: **You're very intuitive! September and the first part of October were truly life's-not-fair months. Thanks so much for understanding. And I am trying to improve, so thanks for your encouraging words.  
**Talons:** We haven't seen the last of the Myrddin storyline. Thanks for writing a review!**SillyGillie: **Thanks for all your nice comments. Hogwarts does need Harry. Thanks for your review!  
**K Felton:** Thanks for reviewing!  
**Cynthia 1850: **I loved your suggestion that Draco might have kidnapped Snape. Thanks for writing!  
**KandiG85:** Yes, I am. Thanks for noticing!  
**Harrie: **Thanks for your review! Sorry for the wait, I'm trying to write faster. Sadly, I've witnessed the pout thing working on my own brother, more than once. And he never seems to mind…  
**Harry/Ginnyfan4ever: **Thanks for saying you like my writing style. I like yours, too. Sorry to be slow. It can't be helped. The update time was cut in half for this chapter. Thanks for reviewing!  
**rosepetal13:** Thanks for saying that about Dumbledore's dialogue. You've got Luna figured out. She and Neville haven't finished experimenting. Thanks for writing a review!  
**Lady of Masbolle:** Thanks for reviewing! I'm looking forward to the sea-fort story. And I've been expecting those jellybeans for the last few days…  
**gopha-gurl: **Yes…more fluff. Thanks for asking and thanks for your review!  
**Illuvatar: **You're right. Sorry.  
**GryffRayHuffSlythendor: **I hope this chapter made the case that Harry's motivation for offering to find Snape is his desire to gain Dumbledore's trust. I'll keep trying. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Maxennce:** Draco's actions were really over the line.  
**Sarah: **:-)  
**Retrieve the Melon: **You're very kind. Thanks for writing a review!  
**MsMissProngs:** Glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Silver Warrior: **Thanks for writing! Draco does present an interesting dilemma.  
**cariluv:** Thanks for your review!  
**Nutty AL: **I do have a ways to go, but I see the light at the end of the storyboard. I'm almost caught up on everything. This chapter was faster. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Ima Quidditch Fan: **Thanks for your reviews! The story has its ups and downs. Hope you still like it.  
**Hary9970: J **Thanks for your nice comments!  
**Torien: **It's nice of you to say that. I write pretty fast, it's revising that slows me down. Thanks for reviewing!  
**jjqc101: **Thanks for writing! It wasn't quite as long this time. Maybe there's a spy, maybe there isn't. At least you know Hermione thinks there's someone who can't be trusted.  
**Fern:** Thanks for your kind review!  
**Lily and James Potter: **Good luck with your story. And thanks for reviewing!  
**Harry Foureyes: **That's a pretty interesting theory about Rhys. I loved reading it. You've put a lot of thought into it, and I appreciate that. Rhys does have a larger part in a future plot line. That's all I'll say. In canon, Snape is unfailingly loyal to Dumbledore. So I figure he must have some redeeming qualities even if he never shows them to Harry.  
**Low-Ki: **Thanks for you nice comments. Some days I find it hard to remember that in character thing, too. Thanks for writing a review!

A/N: Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	29. Rescue

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks to everyone who's reading this story. Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter. I do love hearing from people!

Chapter 29  
Rescue

A big snowstorm at the beginning of March had brought a few extra weeks of cold weather, and things were just now beginning to thaw. Little purple flowers poked through the patches of snow underneath his feet as Harry trudged toward the Magical Creatures enclosure. The sun had already set. He'd have to hurry if he wanted to be on time to meet Hagrid.

Harry had spent a lot of his evenings in the enclosure, tending Hagrid's menagerie of animals and working on his green wood fairy project with Ernie MacMillan. While the fairies' language was incomprehensible, they still made their feelings known. Angry wood fairies could bite through even the thickest gloves, as Harry had found out the hard way. Even so, he thought they were a lot easier to deal with than people these days.

As Harry drew close to the Magical Creatures compound near the forest, he saw Hagrid, wearing a moleskin overcoat and carrying two big buckets.

The half-giant greeted Harry pleasantly. "Reckon it's time to let them fairies return to the forest, 'Arry," he said. "Found one of them tippin' over the Jobberknoll cages last night. Fairies and Jobberknolls are not a good mix."

"I'll talk to Ernie. He said he wanted to try one more charm to try to understand their speech. I'll admit, I wouldn't mind speaking to one of them for a change." Harry shook his left hand. The fairy bite on his index finger still stung a bit.

Hagrid smiled wistfully, "Ah, the wee little creatures couldn't harm a fly. They're just playful, that's all. Yeh have a way with 'em, Harry."

"Er…thanks, Hagrid." Harry smiled and hid his red, sore hands inside his pockets.

Dumping the contents of his buckets onto the compost heap, Hagrid said cheerfully, "Did you 'ear the news? Word has it that Professor Snape's reported in. He's holed up in some woods near Abergavenny, still on young Malfoy's trail."

Harry didn't say anything, choosing instead to open and shut his mouth a few times. Questions coursed through his mind, but he wasn't sure that he should ask Hagrid any of them. If they were closing in on Malfoy, was the Order there? Was Remus with them?

At Harry's lack of response, Hagrid said, "Perhaps I shouldn't've said. Dumbledore didn't mention it was anythin' secret when he gave me the word at dinner." Hagrid looked at Harry appraisingly. "I guess yeh've had this on yer mind lately…it's bin good of yeh ter come and help me."

Although his thoughts were still racing, Harry recovered slightly and said, "I…we'll all be glad to see Professor Snape…of course. Hope everything goes all right." Harry knew he didn't mean a word of it. What he really meant was that he wished Professor Snape had taken him up on his first offer of help. Now that he'd been training, he could make a difference on a mission like this. The fact that they didn't want his help with the rescue made him feel worthless.

Then, the sight of Ginny's rucksack leaning against the wall of Hagrid's shed pushed all other thoughts aside. Harry had seen her study group at dinner, but Ginny hadn't shown up — nor had she answered her mirror either. Between the leftover snow and the already cold night, he could see footprints leading away from her bag toward the dark forest.

He finished Hagrid's chores quickly and followed them. The frozen ground crunched under Harry's feet as he carefully tracked Ginny's footprints across the frosty grounds. Moody's lessons about tracking someone silently were cast aside in his concern for her safety. She had obviously gone into the Forbidden Forest. What could she want in there?

In the cold mist of the early spring night, a half moon shone with a glowing ring around it. Despite the darkness and the freezing temperature, the forest seemed awake and alive. Nocturnal birds fluttered in the canopy overhead. Some small creature scurried through the underbrush.

Harry was deep in the woods, moving slowly so he wouldn't miss any of the tracking clues, whena white figure leapt past him, paused for just a moment as if listening for something, then resumed its flight. It was a unicorn. Judging from the silvery whiteness of her coat, it was a young one. In a heartbeat, he chased after her. Something about this moment made him feel like he had done this before. Or maybe he'd just dreamed it. He began the pursuit.

Racing over tree limbs and ducking under branches, Harry ran. He didn't pay attention to the direction he was traveling. His only focus was on keeping up with the mysterious animal.

They continued their chase through the Forbidden Forest until they happened upon a clearing. Both of them stopped at the sight in front of them. Harry couldn't think why he had begun the chase, but it had led him by chance to his main objective. Ginny stood in the clearing in front of him. Four unicorns were around her. She was feeding one of them out of a bag she held in her hand, stroking the unicorn's nose as she spoke softly. A second unicorn stood behind her nuzzling against her shoulder.

High above them, the clouds stirred allowing the moonlight to shine down on the little clearing in the forest. The young unicorn shifted, cracking a twig loudly. The noise made Ginny look in their direction. Harry was rooted to the spot, mesmerized by the sight of Ginny and the unicorns.

"Harry! What are you doing here? Did you bring this one back to her mother?" Her questions tumbled out one after another without waiting for answers. She stopped when Harry reached her side.

Gently twining his hand through the fingers of her free hand, he asked, "I think the question is what are you doing out here?"

Ginny pulled her hand away and returned to her task. "I had to feed them. Hagrid shouldn't have turned them loose. The nights have been so cold, and this one's torn her leg somehow." She bent down to examine the gash closely, and said, "I think Hagrid should come out and take a look at this."

Suddenly remembering why he'd gone into the forest in the first place, Harry asked, "Why didn't you answer my call?"

Ginny stopped short. "Oh! I must've left my rucksack in Hagrid's shed when I picked up the apples…sorry."

He didn't know what to say. As always, she'd let her generous spirit carry her away. Her attitude was contagious, even these magical creatures could feel it. But, while he knew her intentions were good, they wouldn't protect her from the darker forces in the forest.

She could see he was struggling. "Are you upset with me, Harry?" she asked. "I was just so worried about the unicorns." She turned to the one closest to her and touched its mane.

Looking around at the dark trees surrounding them, he said, "Let's go back to the castle. It isn't all sweet, beautiful unicorns here...and your hands are freezing." He pulled both of her hands into his and cast a warming charm.

"You're thinking about Malfoy, aren't you?" she asked, grinning and lifting an eyebrow. "You thought I might need saving?"

In the weeks since his disappearance, many rumors had circulated about Malfoy. One said that he was hiding out in the forest near the school. Harry knew it wasn't true, but if it would help keep Ginny away, he'd pretend.

Trying to sound like he meant it, he said, "Well…he could be here. Ernie MacMillan swears that he saw Crabbe and Goyle carrying food into the forest. Hard to imagine, but there it is. Ernie wouldn't lie."

She punched his arm and laughed out loud. Bending down, she opened the bag of apples so that the unicorns could help themselves. "I think we're safe right now, Harry. I don't see Crabbe and Goyle, the Centaurs are living on the far side of the forest…and these precious creatures wouldn't be so peaceful if anything awful was nearby." She petted the nearest one affectionately.

As they began to walk back to the castle, Ginny added, "Besides, Pansy swears Malfoy's traveling in Europe with his mother. She has a postcard to prove it. So…who are you going to believe?"

They continued to talk as they walked through the forest, not in any particular hurry, content with each other's company. As they reached the edge of the forest, they were startled by the sound of branches snapping and the ground pounding. Whoever it was stopped nearby. They could hear a loud crack, a curse and someone gasping for air. It wasn't an animal.

Harry stuck his head out to get a better look. Breathing a sigh of relief, he stepped toward the figure, who was leaning on his knees and struggling to catch his breath.

"Remus, what on earth are you doing out here?" Harry asked, surprised to see his guardian.

Between deep breaths, Remus said, "Oh…Harry, I have to get to Dumbledore…I was afraid the Hogwarts gates…would be watched so I used the Apparition point in the forest." As though he just realized something, he said, "And what are you doing out here?"

Ginny stepped up out of the shadows to stand beside Harry. "He thought I was in trouble."

Feeling his face begin to burn, Harry said, "It's not past curfew. Anyway…since I'm the Defense Assistant, I'm not bound to stay out of the forest."

Remus ran his hands over his face. "We'll have to talk about this later. I really have to get to Dumbledore."

"Is this about Malfoy and Snape?" Harry asked, remembering Hagrid's comment that they'd been found.

Looking serious, Remus answered, "You know I can't tell you. I promised Dumbledore."

It sounded to Harry like Dumbledore was pulling all the strings lately, but he'd made a promise of his own to the Headmaster, so he couldn't be mad at his guardian for doing the same thing. Lupin took off running in the direction of the castle.

Left alone again, Harry and Ginny took their time returning to Gryffindor, each anxious to hear stories about the other's day. Then Harry fell silent as they walked up the stairs.

"You're awfully quiet all of a sudden," Ginny said, looking uncertain.

Harry stopped although they were only halfway up the next flight of stairs, and pulled a large red stone from his pocket. Of course, he'd shown it to her before. It was the golf ball sized ruby from the Potter box last summer.

"I knew it," Ginny said, her eyes sparkling with humor as she smiled and reached out her hand. "It was only a matter of time before you handed that over to me. It'll make a perfect necklace — or maybe a ring."

"It'd be a little heavy," Harry smiled at her joke and held it up to her. "I've been thinking about this. I'm going to use it for the tangleberry experiment tomorrow. Neville says the wood is ready. So I'll finally find out if this is good for something."

Although she was standing one step higher than he was, Ginny caught his gaze. For a moment, they just looked into each other's eyes.

Harry saw trust and admiration reflected back in hers. He couldn't believe that someone as warm and caring as Ginny would see him that way, but here she was in front of him, willing him to agree. With his free hand he reached up and touched her cheek. Then he leaned in and kissed her. Just as he was about to lose himself in the soft, delicious kiss, he felt a jolt.

They broke apart as the staircase did what staircases often did at Hogwarts -- it changed.

Ginny laughed. "For a moment there…I thought...never mind."

Although he didn't really understand, Harry laughed along with her.

They parted on the other side of the portrait hole. The common room was crowded, mostly with older students. Colin and Allison waved at Ginny from their table by the window and she headed straight for them, despite a rather disapproving look from Parvati.

Parvatiand Lavender were ensconced in front of the fire, each of them reading their Divination book. Seamus was staring at Lavender's book with his arm draped over her shoulder. He appeared to be doing his best to distract her.

Ron and Hermione occupied their usual place at the table nearby. They'd left a spot clear for Harry. After a quick greeting, Harry settled into the familiar routine of studying with his friends.

Harry opened his Potions textbook, but the words on the page made very little sense. He kept speculating about what Remus and Dumbledore might be planning.

Despite the fact that all his classmates were at least pretending to study, Seamus continued his attempts to get Lavender's attention. He tried sighing loudly several times, and whispering in her ear. Finally, he said, "What does your inner eye say about the Quidditch Cup final? Will Gryffindor win?" He grinned widely at Ron and Harry who had, of course, looked up at the mention of Quidditch.

Closing his book, Ron joined in enthusiastically. "You don't need that Divination rubbish to figure that out. We've clearly got the better team."

"We have to win," Harry said, closing his book, too. "If we tie, Hufflepuff will take the Cup on points."

Pulling his arm away from Lavender, Seamus leaned forward. "I heard Zach Smith shooting his mouth off, claiming that Hufflepuff already has their name on the Cup this year."

Harry snorted and said, "I'm not too fussed. Our chasers run circles around theirs." He looked appreciatively across the room at Ginny.

Folding his arms in front of him, Ron said, "Never thought I'd need to worry about anything Zach Smith was planning."

All the Quidditch talk succeeded where his other efforts had failed. Lavender set her book down and stood up dramatically. With a look back over her shoulder at Seamus she walked toward the portrait hole.

Seamus waggled his eyebrows at Ron and Harry, then followed her.

Shifting a stack of large books aside so she could see Harry better, Hermione asked, "Are you ready for tomorrow?"

"Do you mean Potions?" Harry asked, lifting the textbook in front of him.

While Hermione rolled her eyes, Ron groaned and said, "Yeah…I wonder who'll cover for Snape this time."

"We'll know soon enough," Hermione said. "The real question is who'll keep Crabbe and Goyle from blowing up the classroom?"

They'd had several different substitutes for Professor Snape. None of them seemed to have been warned about the inept Slytherins and with Malfoy absent, they'd seen a few close calls. So far Hermione had been able to prevent catastophe in Potions class.

"Please tell me that you'll stop helping them…" Despite this protest, Ron's sounded resigned to the fact that Hermione had appointed herself the Potions safety monitor during Snape's absence.

"I…I don't see why not!" she exclaimed. "The Slytherins don't lift a finger."

Leaning his head into the center of the table, Harry motioned to Ron and Hermione to lean close, too. "We may get to class and find Snape's back."

"What do you mean?" Hermione hissed, glancing worriedly over her shoulder at Parvati, who was now stretched out lazily on the sofa nearby.

Ron nodded grimly, as if asking the same question.

Casting a silencing charm around their table, Harry proceeded to tell them what little he knew. He told them what Hagrid had said and about Lupin's harried arrival. "Of course, I don't have any of the facts, yet," he said. "But…I thought you'd want to know…there's a chance that Snape's caught the git and they'll show up here."

"If Malfoy shows up here, I'll give him a thing or two to think about," Ron said, his hands fisting unconsciously.

In a conspiratorial whisper, Hermione said, "I doubt they'll let us anywhere near him." Her eyes shifted from one boy to the other, like she was going to organize a coup.

The last thing Harry'd meant to do was upset Hermione. "According to wizarding law, the victim has the right to confront the accused in court." Harry remembered that from when Pettigrew was captured. "If…I mean _when_ they put him on trial for poisoning you — "

"What!" Ron shouted. "You think we'll have to wait for some phony trial?"

Ron hadn't had many nice things to say about the Wizengamot since they tried to send Harry to Azkaban for conjuring a Patronus to protect himself.

"Maybe I shouldn't have said anything," Harry muttered. He was beginning to think he shouldn't have brought the subject up. "I mean…we're not even sure Malfoy's been captured. It's just a possiblity."

Harry wondered if he'd just made things worse. He felt sick about it as he watched Hermione withdraw into herself. He would've preferred it if she were shouting like Ron.

Ron noticed Hermione's reaction, too. In a controlled voice, he said, "Ah…it'll be all right. We've been through worse."

"Never mind that," Hermione snapped. Her brow worked its way into a worried frown. "I've been thinking…and I'll need both of you to help. If Malfoy does come back to Hogwarts, we'll need to be sure that he can't escape…and don't say that we should leave it up to Dumbledore because he was in charge of keeping him locked up last time."

Harry stifled a groan as he leaned back in his chair. Visions flashed through his mind of Hermione marching them off to the library to research trapping spells for the umpteenth time. When Malfoy'd first escaped, they'd poured over one dusty book after another. They'd find Hermione in the library, swamped with an ocean of parchment, looking for just the right spell. He knew that look; Hermione was planning another assault on the restricted section.

Aloud he said, "We'll have to borrow my Invisibility Cloak back from Ginny."

Ron studied Harry suspiciously for a moment. Then he stood and said, "I'll go ask her."

When he'd walked out of hearing, Hermione said, "I wanted to ask you before. Are you ready to try the tangleberry? Neville's really nervous."

Harry was surprised. Neville never mentioned anything to him. "That's frightfully decent of him, but…why?"

"Well, I think he just wants to help somehow." Hermione looked thoughtful for a moment. "And possibly he doesn't want to mess up in front of Luna. I think he'd still like to ask her out."

Remembering the day before when he'd been making Quidditch dives to impress Ginny, Harry nodded. He could feel the weight of the ruby in his pocket.

Hermione was looking at him sympathetically.

"I guess I'm a bit nervous, too," he admitted. "All this trouble. Just for my little mystery. I hope it's all worth it."

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

The following afternoon, Harry went straight to Greenhouse Twelve after his last class. He thought he'd be the first one there, but Luna was there ahead of him, taking down some rather complicated wards.

When he opened the door a thick stream of pale yellow butterflies flew out. Inside, the place was packed with plants from the floor to the ceiling. The air was warm and humid, heavily scented with soil and something floral. Some looked wildly unnatural, while others seemed perfectly normal, like the plain potted daisy in the corner. Harry considered asking Luna why the innocent looking daisy was in a wire cage, but one look at those dreamily protruding eyes, and he decided his question could wait for Neville.

"Did you bring the stone?" Luna asked.

Reaching into his inner pocket, Harry felt around for the large, oval-shaped gem. Hermione had decided early on that it was obviously meant to be the top piece of the torch. No one had argued.

Holding out his hand, palm up, Harry drew his wand and uttered a counter spell. The ruby appeared.

Her eyes popping wide open at the sight, Luna asked, "You keep it concealed?"

Harry nodded. Professor Moody had taught him many tricks of the Auror trade, but this little untraceable concealing spell had to be one of his favorites. He used it for many purposes. He could even conceal his wand, although that was difficult to explain to anyone without explaining he could do wandless magic.

Luna walked over to the small, potted tree in the center of the Greenhouse. The tangleberry graft was blooming. The branches twisted together except at the end where the leaves grew. Another crop of berries hung in green, unripened clumps under the leaves on each branch.

Harry pulled the Myrddin's torch book out of his pocket. The drawing of a tanglewood tree on the front did look remarkedly like the small tree in front of him. He turned to the page that told how to construct the torch so he'd have the spell ready when the time came.

The door of the Greenhouse blew open as Hermione, Ron and Ginny arrived with a blast of fresh air. No one wanted to miss the final experiment, but they would have to wait for Neville.

Hermione walked around the Greenhouse, inspecting the plants carefully. She reached for the daisy in the cage, and asked, "Spinal Tap Daisy?"

Nodding, Luna warned, "Don't touch the cage."

Withdrawing her hand, Hermione said, "I…I wonder where Neville is?"

No one answered. Ron and Ginny were too busy playing with a peek-a-boo flower near the door to hear her. Harry just raised his eyebrows, and continued to watch Luna prepare the tree.

A few minutes later, Neville appeared at the door completely out of breath. "I'm sorry to be late. Professor Sprout needed some help," he announced. Moving next to Luna, he asked under his breath, "Did you get it ready?"

"I've already immobilized it and put up a shield. I just hope that's enough," Luna said.

After a nervous glance at Harry, Neville said quietly, "We don't want a repeat of those berries exploding." He discussed the arrangements with Luna for a few minutes.

Harry conjured a small sphere, but didn't explain its purpose. It was just a small precaution. Despite his outward calm, he could feel the untimely descent of his heart into the pit of his stomach. This could be it -- the answer to the mystery of the torch.

Taking charge, Neville gathered everyone around the tree. "Maybe you all want to be close enough for a good view, but it wouldn't hurt for everybody to put up a shield of their own."

Perhaps thinking back to the days that poor, uncomfortable Neville had spent under the influence of the tangleberry juice, everyone drew their wands and uttered their own spell. Luna put on a large pair of goggles and a raincoat.

When everyone was ready, Neville held out his wand and cast a severing hex on the lowest limb. It was a clean break. Neville picked up the branch and handed it to Harry, smiling proudly.

Before Harry could fit the ruby into the top of the tangled branch and say the necessary words, the tangleberry branch began to shake. The berries were still green when they'd started, but they quickly ripened to a deep purple and began to quiver.

Everyone except Neville and Harry retreated to a safe distance.

"Quick, Harry." Hermione urged from behind a stack of empty pots. "Light the torch!"

But Harry had a different idea. As the berries on the severed limb exploded, he cast the time freezing spell on it, and then he quickly followed it with the containing spell that he'd learned from watching Dumbledore. The suspended spray of purple tangleberry juice flew into the small sphere in his hand.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Harry turned the now berry free branch over in his hand and inspected it closely. "Well…it seems a good length." He hesitated, the book didn't say anything about the wood having leaves, but it wasn't that specific anyway. Glancing briefly at the expectant faces of his friends -- some of whom were now peering from behind leafy plants -- Harry took courage. One way or another, they were all in this together. He placed the ruby in the tangled claws of the wood.

"Wait!" Hermione cry drew everyone's attention. "I…I just remembered the book said the torch burns as bright as sunlight." She conjured a pair of large sunglasses and put them on.

Once everyone had followed suit, Harry began to chant the words from the torch book with his wand aimed at the ruby. At first nothing happened, then the ruby began to glow. For a brief moment, the gem glowed brightly, as if on fire, then the light burst forth into a pyrotechnic display, showering Greenhouse Twelve with red sparks, and blowing out the glass ceiling overhead.

If they hadn't created shields for themselves earlier, someone might have been seriously hurt.

Ron and Ginny ran for the door. Luna tried to throw herself in front of a furry looking ficus.

Hermione and Neville were both shouting, _"Finite Incantatem!"_

Harry was uttering every enchantment removal spell and counter spell that came to mind. Nothing worked. The tree limb was spitting out ash and soot now. He dropped it to the Greenhouse floor as it became too hot to handle. The tangleberry branch quickly burned away to ash.

The group let out a collective sigh. Harry and Neville were covered with a layer of gray soot. Harry reached down and lifted the ruby, seemingly unharmed, out of the pile of ash on the floor. Despite all the fireworks, it was cool to his touch.

"Oh, well…back to square one," Neville said, sounding disappointed.

"I…thanks for trying, Neville…and you too, Luna." Harry looked around at the devastation in Greenhouse Twelve. This was just the sort of misery that he always brought to his friends -- havoc and destruction -- all because they tried to help him.

He felt, rather than saw, Ginny join him at his side.

"We'll help you set this place to rights," Ginny said, uttering a spell to brush off the ash covering them.

"Everyone step back and I'll '_Reparo!_' this glass." Ron held his wand out expectantly.

Stepping away from the fuzzy ficus, Luna said, "I put an _'Impervius!' _on this glass. It really shouldn't have shattered." For a moment she gazed intently at the ruby in Harry's hand.

Hermione joined her. "You were really very lucky. That ruby could have melted with all that power and heat," she added. "If you ever find out what that gem really does…"

"Hang on…" Harry was confused. "You said the only logical purpose for this would be to activate the torch."

She shrugged. "I was wrong," she said as though stating the obvious.

Ron and Harry looked at each other with furrowed brows.

"What's the difference?" Ginny asked. "If we don't clean this up tonight, some of these plants will suffer."

With that admonishment, they all set to work, repairing and scourgifying until most traces of the failed experiment were erased from Greenhouse Twelve.

Harry mostly worked in silence, avoiding eye contact with Neville. He didn't know what to say. Part of him wondered what they would do with the grafted tree now.

When they were about to leave the Greenhouse, Harry stuck his hand in his pocket and encountered the sphere of tangleberry juice. He pulled it out and handed it to Neville. "Here…you might find something useful to do with this."

Luna practically pounced on Neville, lifting up his hand to examine the contents of the see-through sphere in the light.

"No experiment is a total loss. We ruled out one set of variables, now we'll move on to the next." Neville shook the juice sphere slightly. "This has possibilities."

"Definitely," Luna echoed. "Possibilities."

Luna and Neville were soon deeply involved in a highly technical conversation. The two barely acknowledged anyone as they left the greenhouse.

The night was clear, as Harry and the others made their way to the main entrance of the castle. Several times, Ginny looked about to say something, but always thought better of it. Instead, she nestled her hand in Harry's, squeezing his fingers occasionally.

"You're not too disappointed, are you?" Ginny asked. "I mean, we all knew it was a long shot."

Hermione nodded and said, "I'm sure we'll find some other clue. Maybe find some real tanglewood."

Harry knew she was just trying to reassure him, but he thought back to his last search for tanglewood in Myrddin's Den. The cave was empty. It seemed he had reached a dead end.

"I'm going to find Dumbledore. Today's a tutoring day," Harry announced as they passed the Great Hall. "Maybe he'll have some thoughts about all this." He held the ruby out toward his friends, then concealed it and tucked it into a pocket.

Hermione smiled approvingly. "That makes good sense, Harry."

Shouldering his heavy rucksack, Harry made his way to the Gargoyle protecting the Headmaster's office. It took a few minutes for him to discover Dumbledore's ever-changing password. At least the old wizard always stuck to sweets.

Unannounced, he made his way up the stairs. The door opened abruptly as Harry raised his hand to knock. Rhys pushed past Harry and down the stairs with barely a mumbled greeting. Inside, Remus Lupin was seated across the desk from Dumbledore.

"Ah…Harry. I thought we'd canceled today's session," Dumbledore said.

Shaking his head as he walked in the room, Harry greeted them hesitantly, then blurted out, "Our…Herbology experiment didn't go well. So I have time…but if you're busy…"

Keeping his eyes on Dumbledore, Remus stood up to leave. "I'd better get back — "

Harry grasped Remus' arm to stop him. "Wait…can't you tell me what's going on? Something's wrong…"

As Remus met his gaze, Harry could see that he was upset.

"I lost them…" Remus' voice shook as he spoke. "We were so close. Severus knew he was taking a chance by contacting us. He said he finally had Malfoy pinned down, in this place near Abergavenny. He's been tracking Malfoy all this time…always moving around…never staying in the same place for two nights together."

"What happened?" Harry asked, trying to cover his impatience to hear the fully story.

Remus looked at Dumbledore again. This time Harry thought he caught the Headmaster's small nod. "We were too late. Draco Malfoy seems to have tricked Severus somehow -- maybe he traded him for favors with the Death Eaters. Severus couldn't've had any idea this would happen. He thought he could bring Draco back to Hogwarts."

Standing abruptly, Remus said, "I…I have to get back to headquarters…see what we can do about this. I'll mirror call you later tonight, Harry," Remus said, keeping his eyes on his hands now. He seemed uneasy, but Harry knew he wouldn't explain anything more about Order business. Dumbledore probably thought he'd already said too much.

When he'd gone, Dumbledore didn't say anything about the story Remus had just told. They didn't work on their customary conjuring lesson either. Instead, he and Harry talked about the experiment with the tangleberry bush.

Dumbledore didn't have any ideas about the ruby, other than it must either hold some powerful enchantments or charms, of an unknown origin. "Alas, the answer may be lost in time, some forgotten magic that has passed out of all knowledge…we may never know."

Harry felt like the Headmaster was giving him his true opinion about the ruby. It was something, but it wasn't enough.

Deciding nothing ventured, nothing gained, Harry switched subjects. "Has anyone going after him?" Harry asked, sure that Dumbledore would know he meant Snape. "I mean…Remus looked upset...and he seemed to be in a hurry..." He knew it was unlikely that the Headmaster would suddenly change his mind and include him, but he had to try.

"He feels responsible for Severus' fate," Dumbledore said.

"You mean because his team should have been there sooner?" Harry asked, growing impatient.

"If his team had been faster, things might have gone differently." Dumbledore steepled his fingers and looked down his nose in a kindly fashion. "Failures and setbacks are a part of life. Your guardian understands that, and he'll come to terms with this. Sometimes it's only too easy to blame ourselves for things that are beyond our control."

Harry felt like smashing something. Seemed to him that very little was beyond Dumbledore's control these days. Wasn't he the one making everyone promise him things? Obviously, Remus was planning to go after Snape at this Death Eater camp and they didn't want him to know. "I just want to help," he said, his lips drawing into a thin line.

"Rest assured that there is nothing for you to do." Dumbledore smiled and stood, bringing an end to the conversation. "I do understand, Harry. I appreciate that you're doing your best to cooperate with the current situation. And I hope you'll respect my wishes and keep this new information to yourself. I know Miss Granger in particular -- "

Bristling at the notion that his friends couldn't be trusted, Harry said, "She can keep a secret. Anyway, she already knows that Snape contacted the Order."

The Headmaster looked up at Harry sharply. The portraits murmured.

Shrugging his shoulders, Harry said, "This is Hogwarts. It's not an easy place to keep a secret." He looked around at the various portraits on the walls, thinking they should know since they were probably responsible for reporting things to Dumbledore.

"But not impossible…" Dumbledore replied with his characteristic twinkle. "I'm only suggesting that you wait until we have real news of Professor Snape's progress before you tell your friends."

"Of course…I won't tell her of these latest developments if you think it will make any difference."

Realizing that the Headmaster had no intention of explaining any of his plans, Harry left. Of course, he knew they must be working on a strategy to rescue Professor Snape. Dumbledore just didn't want him to be a part of it. Maybe he could convince Remus to explain things later.

Although he didn't have much time before the D.A. meeting, Harry decided to blow off some steam by taking apart a few training dummies. He headed to the Room of Requirement.

After setting things up for the meeting, Harry stood alone in the center of the room. Ron and Hermione weren't expected for a few minutes, so Harry took his sword out of his cloak. He still kept it transformed as a cloak pin, but he also kept a concealing charm on it. This way, no one could tell he was armed. He felt the familiar surge of power as he took the sword in his hand.

Very few people had even seen the sword. Harry intended to keep it a close secret as he sometimes wondered if this was the power that the prophecy had predicted. The sword's energy was palpable. He could feel it flow through him whenever he lifted it. Even Rhys -- who had seen him practice with the sword on occasion -- did not know the full extent of its power.

He went through some practice moves and the sword began to hum in his hands. Just for fun, he brought one of the training dummies to life and began to spar using the powerful weapon. Of course the dummy never had a chance. Harry obliterated it.

"Wow! Where'd you get that!" someone shouted from the entrance.

Quickly transfiguring the sword back into a cloak pin and concealing it, Harry pulled out his wand out and said, "I conjured it." Turning around, he saw that the early arriver was Zach Smith.

"Are we gonna learn that spell?" Zach asked.

Trying to hide his annoyance with himself for being so careless, Harry didn't answer Zach's question. Instead, he busied himself with repairing the unfortunate training dummy. Zach followed him around the room, and repeated his question.

This time Harry was saved from answering by the entrance of Sophie Moon and Blaise Zabini. The two of them had become inseparable since Christmas. Eleanor Baddock followed them through the door and drew Zach's attention.

Instead of discussing the sword, Harry began explaining the defense charm they'd be working on this evening.

Ginny worked out with her study group, partnering with Colin Creevey for most of the sparring. Both of them would probably get an outstanding on their Defense O.W.L. despite the fact that Colin had an unfortunate habit of making his opponent trip instead of stunning them with _Stumblefy! _instead of _Stupefy!_

Hermione came over to Harry during their break. "Is something going on, Harry? You seem really preoccupied tonight."

One look at her serious expression and Harry knew there was no way to fool her. "I…I saw Lupin earlier." He shrugged as though it didn't matter. "I just can't wait to finish talking to him. He said he'd call me later. Maybe we can just make this an early night?"

She looked at him and smiled. "I thought you might be disappointed about…you know…this afternoon."

With a pang of guilt, Harry realized that he wasn't the only one whose hopes had been dashed. After all her loyal help, he couldn't disappoint Hermione's hope of recapturing Malfoy. For a moment, he was glad he couldn't tell her.

He gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "I think we…did our best with that."

To Harry's relief, Hermione seemed to accept this rather lame statement. She went back to helping the younger D.A. students.

Harry adjourned the meeting early, but he wasn't in the mood to go back to Gryffindor tower, and face his friends. He wanted to think of a way to approach Remus about including him on the rescue. They were probably planning it right now.

He decided to return the training dummies to the fencing room, hoping that would give him a chance to talk to Remus without being overhead. Maybe if he stayed out late enough, Ron and Hermione would be asleep. He hated keeping this secret from them. It felt like lying.

When he arrived in the fencing room, the lights were already on. Despite the late hour, Rhys was inside, surrounded by the remains of many practice dummies. He looked up at Harry, sweating and out of breath.

"I really don't feel like talking," Rhys said with a wry laugh. "I suppose Dumbledore told you all about it. Well…I don't want your pity. Besides, it won't help. Nothing will."

Harry walked closer to the young Welshman. Now he could see the dark circles of worry under the other man's eyes. Something was going on with his fencing instructor. Something bigger than his problems with Dumbledore. "What is it?" Harry asked. "Dumbledore doesn't tell me anything."

Kicking one of the heads of the training dummies, Rhys said, "It's my sister. She's has Weeding-Krypstein's Disease." Seeing Harry's blank look, he explained his sister's affliction. Weeding-Krypstein's was an incurable form of wizarding cancer. "She's been surviving on Snape's potions since Christmas…without them she's in a great deal of pain."

"And there's no cure?" Harry asked. Then he grasped the obvious. "Ah…and Snape's been gone."

Perhaps responding to the sympathetic tone Harry used, Rhys answered quietly. "It's beyond magic. We need a miracle." His face looked haunted, as though the image of his suffering sister was in his mind.

Of course, Harry remembered the curative water that had helped Hermione. Why hadn't anyone asked him to get some for Rhys? Snape knew about it. Surely, they'd realized it would offer him some hope.

"Maybe I can help," Harry said. Surveying the mess in the practice room, he pulled his wand and began to put things to rights.

Rhys joined him. With the two of them working, it only took a few minutes. When they'd finished, Rhys thanked Harry and started to leave, but Harry said, "I'll come with you. I'd like to meet your sister."

Shaking his head, Rhys said, "You can't leave the castle, Harry. Dumbledore would fire me if he knew I'd encouraged it."

"What matters is your sister. She's the one who needs help," Harry said. He rushed to explain about the curative water. "…I don't know if it would really work, but it's perfectly safe. Snape tested it before we gave it to Hermione…at least we could try."

Conflicting emotions crossed Rhys' face, his internal struggle ending with a look of defeat. Twisting his hands, he said, "All right. Where is this place?"

Harry told him about the spring outside the cave. Of course, Rhys knew about Myrddin's Den. He had been in Dumbledore's office the morning after Harry found the sword. "If we walk down to the main gates, we can Apparate there together," Harry suggested. "Then you can go on home with the water and I'll come back here. It'll take an hour at most. No one will be the wiser."

Rhys looked like he might just change his mind, but after some more convincing, he agreed to meet Harry at the main gate in a few minutes. He had to pick up his cloak and some things from his office first. That suited Harry.

As soon as Rhys was gone, he pulled the little mirror out of his rucksack to call Ginny. He was disappointed when she didn't answer, but then, she was always studying these days, and they'd just seen each other in the D.A. meeting. He didn't give it another thought. He didn't want to be late to meet Rhys so he shrunk his rucksack and concealed it in the pocket of his robes instead of taking the time to walk all the way back to Gryffindor tower.

Harry found Rhys standing in the shadows near the gates with the winged boars. "Relax," Harry said, thinking Rhys looked a bit anxious. "I've made this trip loads of times."

Grabbing the fencing instructor by the arm, Harry Apparated the two of them to Wales. As they arrived in the darkness of the clearing near the cave, Rhys stumbled and swore. Harry put his fingers to his lips, wishing he'd taken the time to explain that the last time he'd been there, the Death Eaters had been searching the area. He'd kept that little bit of information to himself while trying to convince Rhys this was a good idea. Now he wished he'd been more forthcoming, but Rhys took the hint. He settled down, and followed silently in Harry's wake.

When he reached the fountain, full of debris, Harry worked quickly. He removed the protective spells and pulled the stopper off the potions bottle he'd brought. Once he'd filled it with the sparkling clear water, he replaced the illusion and wards to protect the spring. It was finished within a couple of minutes.

Turning around, he handed Rhys the bottle with a bright smile.

Rhys stared at him with his mouth hanging open. "I honestly…I thought you were just telling a wild story…I…." His face changed suddenly. He looked almost desperate as he hissed, "Get out of here…now!"

The anti-apparition jinx came first. Harry could feel it grip him before he could react. Then the torque around his neck protected him as stunners hit him from several different directions. The dark night was lit with the white light of the protective shield around Harry and the various streams of colored light sent in his direction from the woods around them.

Harry held them off with protective spells until something heavy and unseen hit him in the head. Splashes of red exploded in front of his eyes at the pain, but it only stunned him for a moment. Then he threw a flash of light. While his opponents were temporarily blind, Harry grabbed Rhys and moved quickly inside the main cavern of the cave.

Rhys stumbled and slowed, rubbing his eyes. "They'll be after us in a moment. We should Apparate."

"I can't…you go ahead. I'll be all right. Sh…." Harry said, pulling Rhys close to the cave wall and casting the Disillusionment Spell on both of them. "Stay quiet and hold very still. They'll think we've gone."

Harry tried to summon Aurora with the phoenix stone in his pocket, but nothing happened.

A group of black robed men walked in the door. One of them ran into the center of the room. The rest of the men fanned out back to back and made their way around the room.

For a moment Harry panicked. He realized the torches were lit, but he couldn't remember if they'd come on when he walked in the main room or if they'd already been burning. Then he noticed the archway to Niniane's room was wide open.

Harry heard a small pop near him, indicating that Rhys had Apparated to safety. He could no longer hear anyone else's breathing. Snaking his arm slowly alongside him, all he could feel was the cold cave wall.

At first the men in robes simply scattered around the room as if searching for him. Then the man in the center of the room began casting spells to end enchantments and the others followed his lead. Harry was sure one of them would hit him sooner or later, so he began to edge slowly toward the exit. There were too many of them for Harry to cast the time freezing spell. And if Harry moved too quickly, someone was bound to detect the movement.

At least Rhys had escaped. He could tell someone what had happened, and bring reinforcements. Harry had a feeling he'd need help getting out of this situation.

Then a tall figure, cloaked in black entered the cavern and looked straight at him. Harry's breath died in his throat. He'd know that white, snake-like face anywhere, it was Voldemort himself.

Pointing a long skeleton like finger directly at Harry, he shouted, "You fools. Potter's standing right there!"

To Be Continued…

A/N:Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

**Lady of Masbolle:** Thanks for all the goodies. Research is good. At least, that's what I keep telling myself.  
**Lady of the Dragons2:** Hermione definitely was overreacting. Good theory about the tanglewood. If only that were Harry's only problem…Thanks for reviewing!  
**ImaQuidditchFan:** I like those H/G moments, too. Unfortunately, circumstances are going to be standing in the way of that for a little while. Thanks for writing!  
**DeathZealot:** Thanks for saying that. That sounds like a nice dream to me. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Nimbirosa:** As always, those were really good guesses. I have a break coming soon, so I'll be able to catch up on reading then. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Lourdes:** Yes! That was the calm before the storm. Thanks for writing!  
**Mrs. Sakura Potter:** Thanks for reviewing! I'll work on it.  
**KandiG85:** Hermione is losing her objectivity, but she'll come through when it counts. There is something else in the forest, but that's for later. Thanks for writing!  
**Sabine Strohem-Moss:** Thanks for saying all those nice things!  
**James and Lily 4eva:** Thanks! I will.  
**Moodyboy66:** I hope this chapter answered your question. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Froggy1:** Congratulation! A new baby is a wonderful distraction. I just hope your daughter and her father (did I get that right?) are both recovered from their accident. Sounds like you've taken a lot onto your shoulders. Good luck. Thanks for reading and reviewing!  
**MsMiss Prongs: **Yes. You're 100 right. This part of the story sets up the action. Thanks for writing!  
**Lynn-50670:** Thanks for saying that!  
**Spacko:** Thanks for your review!  
**GryffRavHuffSlythendor:** Thanks for reviewing!  
**SilverWarrior:** Thanks for the reviews! We haven't seen the last of Draco in this story…  
**Hannah:** You must be a really fast reader! Thanks for taking the time. The next few chapters should come a bit faster. I usually _write_ to avoid doing my work, and I have a ton of work right now. Anyway, the plot is about to thicken. Thanks for reviewing!  
**JustYourAverageReviewer:** Harry and Ginny make good sense to me. Thanks for all your kind comments. I appreciate it!  
**Hary9970:** You'll find out in the next chapter whether or not Snape was helping Draco. At least you know that Dumbledore doesn't think he is. Thanks for the review!  
**Saphire Phoenix:** Thanks for all your lovely reviews. It was fun to read your reaction to the earlier chapters as you progressed through the story. Thanks for taking the time to read and review!  
**mysticruby:** I love your stories, too. Thanks for reviewing!  
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**gothgirl:** Yes, she's going to be with Harry. I feel the same way about Dean. Thanks for your review!

Want to tell me what you think? Please review!


	30. Illusions

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Happy New Year! Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter.

Chapter 30  
Illusions

In a small clearing, deep in a wooded area near Abergavenny, Severus Snape woke up. He coaxed his eyes open and the conscious world slowly came into focus. Even the smallest movement brought biting pain, but he forced himself to roll over. Freezing and filthy, his throat felt raw from screaming, and his tongue was swollen. They'd taken most of his clothes and left him loosely bound to a rock with heavy chains. Pity the bonfire was too far away to provide any warmth. Squinting his eyes in the dancing firelight, he searched for any sign of his captors.

Ignoring his throbbing head, he tried to concentrate on the situation at hand. Before passing out, he'd endured an evening of torment, but it could have been worse — much worse. Early on, he realized that the Death Eaters were simply having some sport, probably while they waited for Voldemort to arrive and perform that final curse.

The small clearing in the woods had been full of the black robed simpletons, laughing and chanting all sorts of insults. They'd taken turns casting curses, with varying success. Some of these new recruits didn't know their _Crucios!_ from their _Cushios!_ Or perhaps they'd all been intoxicated -- lucky for him.

Then, by some miracle, they'd left, giving him this short reprieve. He'd heard shouts of excitement as they retreated, and tried to keep his eyes open, but it was too much. The last thing he remembered was someone taking the loose length of chain dangling around his hands and hitting him over the head with it like a Muggle. That must account for the coppery taste of blood in his mouth.

Silhouetted against the fire, he could see two men approaching him. One of them said, "What should we do with this one?"

"Dunno…is he alive, d'ya think?"

"He'll die of the cold, if we don't keep him warm. We could move him closer to the fire."

"Can't be havin' that now, can we? It's the killing curse for this 'un and by the Dark Lord's own hand. 'Ere…this is the robe 'e came in, I reckon that'll do."

Snape felt a heavy cloth fall over him haphazardly. He watched the two men walk away, before he sprang into action. This was indeed his robe and in its pocket…he gathered all his strength of will. Ignoring the jarring pain, he searched until he found it -- a small, insignificant sherbet lemon. He gripped it tightly in his fist and closed his eyes, thinking, 'Bless that meddling fool Potter.' Snape made a silent promise to thank the idiot the next time he saw him.

Swallowing hard, he croaked, "Help." It was enough. He felt himself propelled through the air in a confusion of colors and sounds, pulling him toward Hogwarts and safety. He gave into the darkness then, trusting that help would come. Seconds later he appeared, unconscious and battered, on the floor of the Hogwarts infirmary.

* * *

The torches flickered in Myrddin's Den as all eyes seemed to follow the trajectory of Voldemort's bony finger. Harry felt frozen in place, as if that long finger had pinned him to the wall. For a brief, surreal moment, Harry thought everyone could really see him. 

Then he forced himself to look around the cavernous room. While just a handful of the Death Eaters wore the skull like mask, all of them wore the same plain, black robes. Only Voldemort seemed to be looking directly at him. The others were either squinting at the wall beside him or staring at their master. Most of them were out of breath from chasing him, their breath steaming in the cold cave.

Harry couldn't remember the cave ever being cold before. Of course, his other visits hadn't been in winter, but he recalled being greeted by a blast of warm, sweet air as the torches lit. Tonight the torches were already burning, but the air was freezing cold, and foul.

Jolted into action by the sight of several wands raised in his approximate direction, Harry crept carefully along the wall. His legs felt shaky and his stomach felt sick, making him wonder if that earlier blow to his head was going to make him pass out. Harry rubbed his eyes, trying to clear his vision.

Voldemort and his men continued to point to the place he'd just vacated. Relieved that his Disillusionment Charm had held, Harry let out a long, slow sigh.

Unfortunately, he saw his steaming breath hit the cold air just in time to realize that it must have given him away. Voldemort reacted quickly, sending a spell that missed Harry by inches and tore a hole in the wall, showering him with debris.

Several men converged on the entry while others began to throw stunners in the same general direction as Voldemort had. In the resulting confusion, Harry ducked low and switched directions, heading directly across the cavern toward Niniane's archway and the safety of that inner chamber.

A jinx flew into his path, the purple light streaming just in front of his nose. Harry swerved, covering his face, and fell with a loud crash onto the rough, gritty cave floor. The pain from the abrasion on his arm was nothing to the fear of discovery that threatened to paralyze him again.

All wands flashed spells in his direction. A zinging sounded next to his ear, signaling a narrow miss. As he rolled to regain his feet, another spell scattered the gravel and dirt where he'd just lain. He was trapped in a web of spells. Calls of "_Relashio!_" "_Impedimenta!_" and "_Stupefy!_" rang out all around him.

Harry shouted, "_ACCIO WANDS!"_

Of course, many Death Eaters had enough acumen to protect their wands, but some watched helplessly as their only weapon flew through the air. Harry let them clatter on the ground around him and cast a Concealment Charm to hide them.

The action caused enough confusion for Harry to recast his _Protego!_ Charm. A white light enveloped him as the torque around his neck added strength to the spell, but the magic and concentration that Harry needed to maintain the shield against so many assailants caused his Disillusionment Charm to finally fail.

Surrounded on all sides by the remaining hostile wands, Harry stood motionless as Voldemort joined the circle of Death Eaters. Eyes burning with a frenetic spark, he shouted, "Look what I found!" over a wave of fiendish laughter.

Fighting the pounding of his heart, Harry looked around. The crowd echoed Voldemort's sentiments with a few ecstatic shouts, but Harry noted that none of them joined in his laughter. Some of the wands pointed at him were obviously shaking, as though their owners were frightened.

Harry knew panicking wouldn't help him survive, neither would berating himself for his stupidity. He could hear Professor Moody's voice, telling him to take stock of the situation. There appeared to be about twenty Death Eaters forming a circle around him. Some sort of jinx or ward prevented Apparating. The Portkey in his pocket wasn't working, and neither was the Summons Stone. If Aurora could get here, she would have by now.

On the bright side, only two guards blocked the exit…and despite his obvious enthusiasm, Voldemort seemed to be restraining himself so far. The last time they'd met, Voldemort cast the _Avada Kedavra!_ spell almost immediately. He could easily have killed him by now. Instead he seemed more interested in playing around, maybe because he had an audience.

Looking into the mask-like face, Harry wondered what evil plan was congealing within. Though the slitted eyes danced with excitement, Harry's scar didn't even twinge.

But there was no time to ponder what that might mean. Harry had no way to know when Rhys would arrive with help. His best chance was to distract the Death Eaters and try to break past the two guards.

Voldemort licked his lips and asked eagerly, "Was there ever any doubt we'd meet again, Potter?"

Harry ignored the question. Instead, he nodded toward the black ash stick in Voldemort's hand and asked, "New wand?"

Voldemort's only answer was a narrowing of his eyes, but one of the men behind him made a small gasp and whispered something too softly for Harry to catch.

"How long have you been using this cave?" Harry said, struggling to think of a topic interesting enough to keep a conversation going. "Are you quite sure you've explored all of it?"

Voldemort's face descended into a grotesque sneer. "I didn't bring you here for a chat. Make no mistake. I plan to kill you."

The figure beside him whispered, "But…we're only meant to--"

"I don't care! He's here with me now." Voldemort yanked the hood off the man who had spoken. Putting his face close, he spat, "_I've _got him."

The balding, gray haired man shrunk away with fear, but a short, rather stocky masked man standing behind Harry objected forcefully. In a thick foreign accent, he shouted, "But zee prophecy!"

Voldemort shrieked, "The prophecy must be wrong! He bleeds when you cut him, just like anyone else. Look at his arm!" Snatching the hood off the man on his left, he commanded, "Tell them."

The blood drained from Harry's head. Something in hisstomach twisted and he struggled not to faint as he saw who was standing before him. Rhys, his fencing instructor, stood among their ranks, wearing their uniform and avoiding Harry's gaze.

It could only mean one thing. Any hope of rescue was gone.

Voldemort poked Rhys' shoulder, and shrieked, "Speak up!"

Not caring to hear the answer, Harry let out a loud cry. Transfiguring his cloak pin back into his sword, he swung it before anyone had time to react. In that split second of fear, he'd decided. If no one could rescue him, he'd fight his way out of the cave, despite the odds--starting with his fencing instructor.

Surprised by Harry's sudden lunge, Rhys had no time to defend himself. The pulse of power that shot through the sword hit him directly in thechest and sent him flying across the cave where he lay motionless on the ground.

Without taking time to lament Rhys' fate, Harry continued to attack the men in black robes. He spun in a circle. With one sweeping blow, he cut down the two men behind him as they tried to move a step closer. Both men crumpled at Harry's feet. The blood flowing freely from their wounds was sickening, but Harry lifted the sword and faced his next attackers. He wasn't planning on shrinking away from this fight.

Adrenaline coursed through Harry as righteous vengeance filled his thoughts. Images of Sirius and his parents sprang to mind. He would do this for them, and to prevent others from suffering a similar fate. At least none of his friends--safe at Howarts--were at risk this time.

With a swift blast, another masked man flew backwards into one of the torches. Then Harry turned his sword toward Voldemort.

"A sword fight, Potter?" Voldemort's laugh was almost a chuckle. "Aren't you a wizard? I think we can do better than swor--"

Harry sent a warning bolt of magic through the sword, silencing Voldemort and forcing him to hastily conjure a shield. In response, several men stepped protectively in front of their master. They stood there, like particularly dense ninepins, watching the fight around them.

Two men came forward, grabbing for Harry's arms.

Harry kicked out to the left, catching one man in the knee. The man crumpled to the floor with a short cry. Swerving to the right, Harry planted his elbow in his other opponent's kidney.

Although he moved away quickly, someone caught up with Harry and grabbed his sword arm from behind, momentarily stopping him. A heavy stomp on the man's foot made him let go. Harry drove his sword hilt into the man's stomach with enough force to send the man to the ground, clutching his stomach and writhing in pain.

As if he suddenly remembered which end of the sword was pointy, Harry struck out at the next group of opponents with a series of thrusts. At the same time, he rained spells down on the men around him. He fought without thinking about what might come next. He was fighting for his life, what did it matter if he had to fight one man or twenty?

Their spells useless against Harry's torque, the Death Eaters backed up in confusion, trying to avoid his blade, yet they still managed to maintain the circle. One man conjured a shield, but was blasted onto his backside from the force of the spell. Before Harry could take advantage of this to escape the circle, more Death Eaters joined the ring.

Something about the reinforcements reminded Harry of the rejuvenation spell that Moody had used on the training dummies. Without pausing in his assault, Harry shouted, "_Prostratio!"_ The spell sent two Death Eaters face down on the cave floor. As he leapt over them, he swung his sword to the right and his wand to the left.

The man to the right managed to avoid the sharp, cutting edge by falling back while the man on the left fell prey to Harry's Ossify Hex.

Now free of the circle, Harry didn't stop to gauge anyone's reaction. He was still badly outnumbered, but the power in the sword began to rush through him, making him feel stronger, almost invincible.

As if they felt the power emanating from Harry, the next wave of Death Eaters turned away, but still closed off his escape. Harry struck the man directly in his way, hitting him across his back with the sword. The stroke cut through the fabric of his robe and drew a long stripe of blood as the man dropped like a stone.

The olderbalding man who'd had the courage to argue with Voldemort earlier stepped forward to block Harry's path. Extending his wand, he yelled, "_Stupefy!_"

Harry sliced the man's wand in half as the red spell he'd sent bounced off his shield.

Although startled for a moment, the Death Eater grabbed a wand from the man next to him. He managed to say, "_Relash…"_ before Harry cast, "_Ossify!" _turning the man to bone.

The protective glow of white light surrounding Harry grew more intense as more spells flew in his direction. Another quick sweep of his sword brought down the next Death Eater who stood in Harry's path toward the exit. Voldemort quickly sent back a stream of green light. Not wanting to find out what spell that was, Harry leapt aside.

Voldemort had so far mostly held back, seeming more curious than upset by Harry's offensive. Now his face lit with an unholy light. "Bring her in!" Voldemort shouted, smiling repulsively as if he were enjoying a game.

The black figures near the entryway parted to allow another group of men to drag a struggling and crying figure into the cave. They forced her to turn around and pulled her hood off.

"Ginny!" Harry cried. He froze, sword arm extended, and wand poised to cast another spell.

"Set your weapons down, or she's dead," Voldemort pronounced, moving easily to her side.

Ginny winced as Voldemort ran his bony finger down the side of her face, leaving a track of blood in its wake. Struggling against the two men squeezing her arms, she shouted, "Please, Harry! Do what they say!"

Harry dropped the sword to the cave floor with a loud clatter and concealed his wand, making it appear to vanish. "Just let her go!" he shouted, unable to take his eyes off her. His chest rose and fell heavily.

The sweaty faced Death Eater closest to Harry grabbed the sword eagerly, with a satisfied smile. Of course, that smile was quickly replaced by a contorted grimace, as the sword handle scalded his hand. He quickly dropped it and fell to his knees with a strangled cry.

Harry used the distraction to swiftly transfigure the sword back into a cloak pin and surreptitiously summon it back to his hand. In one quick movement, the sword was once again concealed in his robes.

No one commented on the disappearance of the sword, perhaps assuming that Harry had conjured it to begin with.

"And your wand!" Voldemort commanded, keeping his own wand trained on Ginny.

A knot of anger grew inside Harry as he watched Ginny recoil in terror from the two men holding her roughly. He pulled his wand from his pocket and threw it forcefully against cave wall. It broke cleanly in two as it hit. Holding his empty hands up for inspection, he glared at Voldemort and said, "There. Now let her go."

"No!" said Voldemort with a triumphant laugh. "You're a fool, Potter, just a trusting young fool. You believe everything you see."

His laugh sounded almost giddy. This time, the rest of the room broke out laughing too. Only a few of the Death Eaters in the circle remained standing after Harry's rampage with his sword, but they all joined in the strange joke. To Harry's surprise, Ginny laughed, too.

Stepping away from the men who'd been holding her, she grinned and said in a sing-song voice, "Please, Harry! Do what they say!"

Voldemort, laughing hideously, put his arm around her.

Maybe this was just a really bad dream. The cave had never been quite like this before. And if that wasn't Ginny, then maybe he was back in his bed at Hogwarts, trapped in some terrible nightmare. Yet it all felt real. The scrape on his arm oozing blood certainly stung like the real thing. The unconscious Death Eaters at his feet seemed genuine.

Harry watched numbly as "Ginny" morphed into yet another Death Eater with an amused grin on his face. This one was short, rather thin and dark. Blowing Harry a kiss, he joined the remaining rank and file. They were kicking aside the fallen to form a new circle.

A stunner bounced easily off his shield while Harry reviewed his options once again. The same two guards blocked the exit, but he didn't know how many more of them were outside. He wondered briefly what kind of illusion spell could make someone look just like Ginny. He'd never heard of one. It must be dark magic.

"His shield is holding…without his wand," said the balding man next to Voldemort, looking at his wristwatch.

Voldemort gave Harry an appraising look. Aiming his wand at Harry, his face became a mask of hate as he shouted, "_Crucio!_"

This time, Harry didn't fight back. Everything felt like it was in slow motion, as he stared at Voldemort's wand and intensified his shield. The spell bounced off and flew directly back toward Voldemort, who grabbed the man next to him and put him in the path of the spell. The unfortunate man fell to the ground, writhing in pain.

The laughter stopped as everyone gawked at the spectacle. Whether they were shocked that he could deflect one of the Unforgivable Curses, or they were just enjoying the show, Harry didn't want to know.

While the Death Eaters concentrated on the man in agony, Harry took his chance to float two of the large ceramic jars in the room over the heads of the guards near the entry. At the same time, he let them drop and recast the Disillusionment Charm on himself.

In the melee of his disappearance into thin air, he slipped between two of the Death Eaters circling him and ran toward the exit. One leap took him over the unconscious guards. But two steps into the narrow entrance, he was forced to turn back. Several more men blocked the narrow passageway to freedom. All of them wore their hoods close around their faces. They flanked a tall, authoritative figure dressed in severe black robes that seemed to absorb the light around him.

Harry backed into the cave and flattened himself against the wall. As he watched, these reinforcements made their way to Voldemort's side. His scar began to burn. The cat and mouse game must be getting to the dark wizard. He was growing tired of playing. Soon, he'd unleash his anger and that would be the end. Harry could feel a fountain of emotion bubbling up inside him, breaking through his mental defense, and filling him with a burning hatred that he knew was not his own. He struggled to restore his mental shield.

"Where is he?" asked the tall cloaked man, sounding dangerous.

"I…I," Voldemort began.

"_Crucio!_" the tall man said, almost lazily.

The figure of Voldemort fell to the ground writhing in pain. Harry watched in horror as the snake like illusion of Voldemort faded into the skeletal face of Bellatrix Lestrange. Her features twisted in agony as she screamed without restraint.

Harry's heart pounded in his ears. One illusion followed another in this nightmare. First someone masqueraded as Ginny, now the Voldemort he'd been confronting turned out to be Bellatrix. He looked over at the motionless figure of his fencing instructor, hoping to see those familiar features transformed back into some miserable Death Eater. But Rhys remained Rhys, only pale and deathly still.

"I've warned you about wasting my time, Bella. I've no interest in your games. I have many other matters to attend."

Her torment subsiding, Bellatrix muttered, "My Lord, he is here…hidden…but disarmed." She sat up shakily and pointed to the broken halves of Harry's wand against the cave wall.

The man crooked a spidery finger and the wooden pieces flew into his grasp. Waving one of the pieces, it squeaked and turned into a rubber mouse. He threw it down on top of Bellatrix without comment.

One of the Death Eaters stepped courageously forward, bowing low. "It's just as you said it would be, Master. Now that he's older, nothing can touch him. The more we attacked, the more powerful he grew. Something ancient protects him…" He continued in hushed tones, "_Everything_ rebounded…even the Cruciatus Curse…and…and I think he may have killed the Welshman." He looked hesitantly over toward Rhys.

"We shall see," said the tall man in a high cold voice.

Even though the man's hood was still hiding his face, Harry was certain this truly was Voldemort. A sparkling smoky gray wind emanated from him, traveling in an ever-widening circle outward from the evil wizard, briefly lighting everything in its path.

Harry knew that when it reached him, he'd be discovered…and no matter what they thought, not everything would bounce off him. The exit was blocked by the new arrivals. He had no way of knowing how many more were outside. Frantically, he tried to Apparate, but it was no use.

Across the room, he saw the ghostly figure of Niniane appear briefly in the curiously open archway to the other room. She was in the shadows, but her ethereal appearance seemed to beckon to him.

It dawned on Harry that if he could reach the rooms below, he might be able to Apparate from there. He'd done it before. Hopefully, no one would be able to follow. Ron couldn't get through that arch — of course, it hadn't stood wide open back then.

He had only seconds to make up his mind. Avoiding the swift path of Voldemort's sparkly whirlwind, Harry reached the archway without anyone seeming to notice. Once safely inside and out of sight of the dark wizards in the outer room, Harry revealed himself.

Niniane smiled her greeting and held her fingers to her lips in the timeless signal for quiet. She pointed toward a new arched opening on the far side of the room.

Harry waved his hand at the wall concealing the route to the kitchens and storerooms, the one she'd shown him before.

She shook her head. Floating through the new arch, she looked back at him expectantly, a beautiful, hopeful smile on her face.

Harry followed.

On the other side of the arch was a passageway that led up in a spiral of rough-hewn stairs. Harry'd never seen anything like the stone in these walls. As they began their ascent, the walls were veined with a white stone. The fingers of white grew thicker and more translucent as they reached the top of the stairway.

Harry ran up the stairs after Niniane, toward the light high above him, away from the dark, evil men searching for him in the main part of the cave. With every step, his hope grew. He struggled to keep up with her. She floated so effortlessly in front of him.

At the very top, another archway led into a brilliantly lit cave. The walls were made of a beautiful translucent stone — pure quartz or something, Harry guessed. Niniane turned and waited for him.

Harry hurried into the room and joined her, struggling to catch his breath. Although he figured this could only be a momentary reprieve, Harry leaned his head against the cool wall and let go of some of the tension he was feeling. "Thanks…I don't know how long it would have been before they found me."

"You know I'd do anything to be with you," Niniane answered sweetly. "And now there'll be nothing to stop us." She looked at him serenely, a smile gracing her beautiful face.

Confused, Harry said between gasps, "I…I'm sure it will be…er…nice to visit with you."

"What about visiting with me?" asked Voldemort as he appeared, all alone, in the entrance.

Scar burning, Harry spun around. As far as he could see, they were the only occupants of this part of the cave. Perhaps the others couldn't pass through the arch to Niniane's room.

"What. Is. This. Place?" Harry asked Niniane in slow deliberate syllables.

Ignoring the question, Voldemort stayed on the threshold, and said, "You've been a thorn in my side too long, Harry Potter."

Despite feeling rather dizzy, Harry's mental shield held. He wasn't prepared, but if the final confrontation had arrived, he was determined to do whatever he could. Mustering all his resolve, Harry shouted, "Why don't we just finish this!"

With a derisive grin, Voldemort answered, "I have my own plan. Thanks to your stupid heroics at the Department of Mysteries, we'll never know what the entire prophecy said, but I can deduce the rest."

Harry didn't want to think about what Voldemort's plan might be. Neither could he see any hope of getting past the evil wizard. Frustrated, Harry shouted, "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Don't you?" Voldemort asked.

Suddenly worried that Voldemort planned to possess him in order to find out the rest of the prophecy, Harry redoubled his mental defenses. The pain in his scar subsided. One fact seemed clear. The only thing keeping him alive at this moment was some sort of misinterpretation of the prophecy.

"Don't bother to lie," Voldemort spat out at him. "The old man gave me the hint I needed. 'There are some things worse than death. That's your weakness.' Ha…he thought I wouldn't figure it out, but he started me thinking of ways to be rid of you…something worse than death."

A quick glance around the cave, verified that the only way out was through the archway. Short of some supernatural occurrence, Harry couldn't see any alternative to fighting, but as long as Voldemort kept talking, Harry had a chance to think of something else.

Happily, Voldemort seemed bent on a lengthy explanation. "They say you can't be killed. I started to wonder if they were right. Every time I try, something or someone intervenes." His flat nostrils flared angrily, but he continued speaking without taking a breath. "Even when you were a helpless child, the spell backfired. My interest in killing you played right into the power you were prophesied to possess…it tore me from my body and left me in limbo…I don't even know what existence that was, somewhere between life and death. Dumbledore's words reminded me…I decided to find a way for you to experience something similar."

Looking into the narrow slits of Voldemort's eyes, Harry realized with a sinking heart that the evil creature believed every word of his confused rant. Part of him knew that he should be glad that Voldemort really had come to the conclusion that he couldn't be killed--maybe that meant he'd stop trying--but he was overwhelmed with the feeling that he wouldn't like the alternative any better.

Voldemort seemed to be enjoying himself. He folded his arms and continued speaking in a smug tone. "A clever ploy on Dumbledore's part…using a mother to arm an innocent baby with such incredible defenses that anyone who attacked would be destroyed. And who knows what other ancient charms the old man cast...it all became clear after the Department of Mysteries. He wouldn't attack me when I possessed you that night, because he knew that any spell he cast would backfire."

Voldemort's smile split his face like a gash. "But it doesn't matter anymore…I found a different way to free the world from the influence of Harry Potter. Once I've finished sealing this opening, you'll be trapped in here for the rest of your days." His tongue darted out as he licked his lips in satisfaction. "It's really quite generous of me when you think about it. To spare your life and give you such a pretty tomb."

That was enough for Harry. In desperation, he transfigured his sword and lashed out at Voldemort. Harry ran toward archway, holding the sword over his head, planning to wipe that evil smile off that pasty face once and for all. If he couldn't stun him, maybe he could run him through or knock him down the stairwell or something.

Unfortunately, he found Voldemort was already out of reach. When he drew close to the archway, Harry could see that some sort of gauzy white netting covered the opening. As though invisible spiders were carefully spinning a web, gossamer thin strands already covered every inch of the exit.

Harry's blade was useless against the weaving. The same sword that had cleaved heavy wooden doors from across the practice room simply glanced off the surface with a mysterious clang.

Safe on the other side, Voldemort continued to talk wildly. "You're never going to leave, Potter. Whatever enchantments your mother placed on you…or that old fool Dumbledore. None of it matters. You're trapped. Merlin couldn't get out of this cave. What hope do you have?"

Completely panicking, Harry tried to drop the barriers in his mind. He tried to use his scar connection to enter the dark wizard's mind, but it was too late. He could feel nothing. Sweat poured down his face from the effort.

Perhaps the enchanted barrier that continued to interlace itself across the archway was blocking the connection. He watched horrified as the weave grew tighter and thicker. Soon he wouldn't be able to see anything on the other side.

In a last reckless effort, he lashed out verbally. "Dumbledore was just trying to tell you that you've wasted your life. You've spent all your time avoiding death. That's not living. Your miserable existence is the fate far worse than death. If you live a thousand years, you'll still be as pathetic and empty as you are now."

"You'll have a fine life, Potter, with a ghost for your only company." Voldemort glowered with satisfaction. "While I'll have the entire wizarding world bowing at my feet."

"And when you finally die, no one will mourn! In fact, they'll probably cheer in the streets…" Harry thought he saw a flicker of hate pass over Voldemort's features as he added, "They did the last time."

For a moment,his taunts seemed to have an effect, maybe enoughto make Voldemort tear down the covering and come after him. Harry welcomed the thought. At least then he'd have a fighting chance. His hands gripped his sword.

But the weaving continued to tighten, and Voldemort grew visibly calmer.

Overwhelmed with the desire to wipe that smug look off the monstrous face in front of him, Harry dispensed with all caution and screamed, "I KNOW THE PROPHECY!" Voldemort's eyes narrowed, but he appeared unshaken as Harry continued to yell, "I HEARD THE WHOLE THING! AND YOU HAVE IT ALL WRONG!

If that caused Voldemort any concern, he didn't show it. "It no longer matters what the prophecy said. Any way you want look at it, I'm rid of the Potter problem as soon as this spell is complete." A small smile distorted his features as he directed his attention to the ghost of Niniane behind Harry. "What were the words you used to bind Merlin inside? Ah yes…_I mewn chrau ydy chryfder!"_ As he spoke, he opened the stopper on a small vial and sprayed the contents across the gauze.

It started with a few drops, then rapidly spread, turning the pale weaving to a deep blood red. When it seemed to have reached everywhere, the covering changed again into a milky white stone that matched the walls.

If Voldemort continued to speak on the other side of the barrier, Harry could no longer hear him. He turned toward Niniane who was standing where he'd left her, seeming unconcerned about his fate. He strode toward her, shouting at the top of his lungs. "You…you helped him do this!" Harry uselessly slashed his sword through the air, and glared at her. "You showed him this place and told him how to trap me!"

Her lower lip quivering, Niniane said, "I…I only wanted to keep you with me…he said he could help."

She threw herself down and cried. Harry watched her sobbing, and couldn't help but feel sorry for her. A tumbled riot of emotions rushed through him. It was all too much. Voldemort and Bellatrix. The fight. Ginny, and yet…not Ginny. Rhys' betrayal. He dropped his sword with a clatter and sank to the floor next to Niniane's prostrate body. Harry buried his face in his lap and hugged his knees.

They stayed that way for a while. Harry kept his eyes shut tight and listened to Niniane's miserable crying. He knew how she felt. From what he'd pieced together about her life, things had a way of falling apart, not unlike his own.

It occurred to him that along with being one of the main reasons he was trapped here, she might be his only companion for quite some time. That thought was followed swiftly by a sudden fear that she would vanish. Harry patted the space where her shoulder should have been in what he hoped was a soothing way. "We'll think of something." The ghost felt icy cold and he had to be careful or his fingers slipped right through. Whether it was to her or to himself, he added, "It'll all get sorted properly…in the end."

Sitting up straight to look around the empty cave, Harry thought that Voldemort was right about one thing; the cave was beautiful. A radiant light suffused the crystal white walls as though the stone itself was magical. The cave floor was uneven and littered with pieces of the same translucent white stone, some the size of a fist, projecting upward as though growing together in a cluster. Beautiful, but cold.

Part of him was overwhelmed with relief that neither Voldemort nor his minions had killed him outright. They hadn't even been able to penetrate his shield. Except for the lump on his head and the abrasion on his arm, he was unhurt. He knew he should be cursing his fate, but he was exhausted, and he just couldn't bring himself to believe he was trapped forever.

There had to be a way out.

Niniane stopped crying long enough to peek at him. Seeing that Harry was no longer shouting, she floated to a sitting position beside him.

Harry forced himself to smile at her. For now, he'd have to find a way to gain her sympathy, and possibly enlist her aide. She held the power of life and death over him for she knew the secrets of this cave.

**

* * *

**

As the night grew darker, so darkened Ginny's mood. She threw her charmed mirror down on her bed in disgust. She'd been trying to call Harry for ages, without any success. She'd seen him at the D.A. meeting, but that had been hours ago. As far as she knew, Harry'd never returned to Gryffindor. It just wasn't like him not to mirror call her before he turned in for the night. And he'd never refused to answer her before.

Pulling back the curtain on her four poster bed, she peered around. A patch of moonlight shone across the center of room, casting her sleeping roommates in shadow. Deciding that none of them would notice, she slipped quietly out of bed. She was still dressed, but she wrapped up in her dressing gown anyway. It wouldn't do for anyone to suspect she'd been out carousing in the middle of the night.

A few moments of rummaging in her trunk yielded Harry's Invisibility Cloak and her favorite pair of thick socks. The stone floors of the castle were cold and she didn't know where her search would lead her. She tied her shoes without magic and straightened up, yawning broadly, just in case anyone was watching. As an afterthought, she grabbed the little mirror and slipped it into her pocket.

Deciding she didn't want to go barging into Harry's dorm at this hour alone, Ginny first tiptoed into Hermione's dorm down the hall. Parvati and Lavender were sleeping soundly, but there was no sign of her friend.

A sigh of relief escaped her lips. Harry was probably just busy studying with Hermione and Ron. She vaguely remembered someone mentioning an upcoming Transfiguration test. Or was it Charms? Just to be sure, she ran toward the common room expectantly, forgetting that she was still wearing the Invisibility Cloak.

As she sailed down the flight of stairs, she heard someone speaking in a husky voice.

"Ah…that's…oh…"

Ginny didn't catch the answer. Instead, she let out an involuntary squeak as she reached the bottom of the stairs and saw Ron and Hermione entirely too close to one another on the sofa in front of the hearth.

They jumped apart when they heard her. "Who's there?" asked Ron, brandishing his wand.

Hermione stood and busily smoothed her robes and hair. Tilting her head to one side, she gently moved Ron's wand hand lower. "Careful, Ron. It's probably just some first year, out of bed in search of a glass of water." Patiently collecting the scattered books on the floor around the sofa, she asked, "Remember Tommy Paxton last week?"

Ron stood beside her and grinned. "Oh…I remember last week really well."

Hermione rolled her eyes, but she dropped her book bag and slipped her hands around Ron's neck. Reaching up, she said, "Then you should remem…"

Clearing her throat to announce her presence, Ginny said, "I don't want to remember. Thank you very much." She pulled off the Invisibility Cloak. The common room clock chimed one a.m.

Clearly miffed at the sudden appearance of his baby sister, Ron said, "And what are you up to then? It…it's well past time for you to be asleep."

Hands on her hips, Ginny's mouth set into a hard line. "And what's you're excuse? Ew…don't tell me. It's bad enough I walked in on you two doing…whatever you were doing."

"Out of bed…at one o'clock in the morning…wearing your boyfriend's Invisibility Cloak…Where is Harry?" His face reddening, Ron looked like he was just getting warmed up to lecture, but his sister's response took the wind out of his sails.

Ron's mention of Harry reminded Ginny of why she was out of bed. Blinking, she said, "That's just it…Harry's missing. He doesn't answer his mirror." She pulled it out of her pocket and asked, "Have either of you seen him since the D.A. meeting tonight?"

With a puzzled expression, Ron looked at Hermione, then nodded. "I'll check his bed." Brushing past his sister, he added, "You wait here."

Rolling her eyes, Ginny said, "That's right, Ron. Can't let me near the boy's dorm…especially this time of night. Who knows what would happen?"

With a smile that Ginny thought was a little patronizing, Hermione said "We…that is, Ron and I were out late with prefect rounds. And didn't you go to the library with your Luna? Harry's probably sound asleep in his bed."

Realizing that she must seem like a foolish alarmist, Ginny tried to cover by shrugging and changing the subject. "So…you must know the castle fairly well by now. Since you go on those prefect rounds almost every night."

Before she could answer, Ron returned, looking worried. "Harry's bed hasn't been slept in. His…" He paused and glanced at his sister before continuing. "His pajamas haven't been touched. Did you know that Dobby washes and irons Harry's pajamas every day? We never even see Dobby, but there they are…laid out perfectly…every evening…and his clothes in the morning. That's devotion isn't it? To think that -- "

"Ron!" Hermione interrupted. "We have a problem here."

Ginny pleaded with him. "Go get Harry's map. You must know where he keeps it."

At her brother's sleepy look, Ginny answered, "Fine." She swung Harry's cloak back on and began walking toward the stairs leading to the boys' dorms.

Ron caught up with her, accidentally tripping into her, and knocking them both off balance. She grabbed the railing and pulled the hood down to show her face. "Ron!"

"Shh…honestly…why are you shouting?" Ron asked as he climbed up the stairs past her. "Give me a moment…I do know where the map is. Wait with Hermione. We'll look for him together…I'm just as worried as you."

Walking over to the stairs, Hermione said, "He's right. We better stay together. If something has happened to Harry." She paused and patted Ginny's hand. "Well…I've been reading up on tracking spells ever since Draco escaped. We might find one of them useful. If he's fallen into some sort of trap…we…" She stopped speaking and gave Ginny a worried look.

Turning toward her friend, Ginny said, "Thanks…I knew you'd help."

Making no effort to be quiet, Ron waved the Marauder's Map as he clambered back down the stairs. "He's not in the castle."

"Are you sure?" Hermione asked, grabbing the proffered map and searching for herself.

Ginny leaned over her shoulder and scanned the little dots on the map. Now that she had proof he was missing, she didn't want to believe it. "Maybe…maybe he fell asleep in the library wearing a Disillusionment Charm."

Her brown curls bouncing, Hermione shook her head vigorously. "No…that can't be right. The map never lies…and it can't be tricked like that." She handed it back to Ron.

Her forehead furrowed in concentration, Hermione pulled her wand and uttered the most powerful tracking spell she'd found in recent weeks, the one that pointed away from the castle towards the southeast whenever she used it on Draco Malfoy.

Ignoring the feeling of her heart pounding in her throat, Ginny watched as Hermione's wand pointed southeast once again.

"That means nothing," Ron said, seeming flustered. "Are you sure that spell really works? Maybe it just points the same direction all the time."

Hermione said quietly, "I think it's time to wake up Professor McGonagall."

A few short minutes later, all three of them followed their head of house up the stairs toward the Headmaster's office. Even before they reached the top, they could hear it, a sound so poignantly beautiful that it filled you up inside, conjuring hope and strength of purpose where there had only been despair. Ginny had heard it before, in the Chamber of Secrets, when Fawkes had come to Harry's aide and again in the woods with Aurora.

As they rounded the corner, she could see that it was Harry's phoenix, flying around the room rafters, singing loudly and occasionally stopping, suspended in midair next to Dumbledore.

Slipping under McGonagall's arm, Ginny hurried toward the bright gold and red bird. "She must know where he is!" Shouting excitedly, she called to the bird, reaching up as if to grab her tail feathers.

The bird dove toward Ginny, but Ron pulled his sister away, pinning her arms to her side and shielding her from the phoenix. "No…Ginny. You can't chase after Harry in the dead of night. He could be in danger."

Ginny shouted, "Exactly!" but the sound was muffled against Ron's chest. She struggled against her much largerolder brother, not so subtly trying to reach into her dressing gown pocket for her wand.

"Your brother is quite correct, Miss Weasley." Dumbledore rose from his seat. "Mr. Potter could be anywhere. Until we find out precisely where his phoenix wants to take us, we'd best gather some more information about his situation. But take heart…if Mr. Potter's phoenix is here, trying to enlist our assistance, then we can be sure that he is, in fact, alive."

"Ha…didn't even know he was missing," Ginny muttered, not caring about how rude she sounded or even if what she said was true. Ron's death grip was really annoying. She would make her brother sorry for this. For now, she stopped struggling and gave Ron a warning glare.

Ron didn't acknowledge the look, nor did he remove his arms. Instead, he held tight and kept a wary eye on the phoenix overhead.

The fireplace flared and Lupin, Shacklebolt and Tonks stepped through.

"Ah…here they are," Dumbledore said with infuriating calm. "Thank you for joining us. I fear we've no time to lose."

To Be Continued…

A/N: I wanted to take a moment to congratulate those readers who had Rhys down as a potential Death Eater. Well done, you!

Thanks to everyone who reviewed!  
**Sabine Strohem-Moss:** At least they tried to get the torch to work. Something good could still come of their experiment. Sorry about the cliffhanger in the last chapter. In my defense, I could have ended this chapter in a couple of places that would have been far worse cliffhangers. Thanks for writing!  
**Harrie:** I loved the 'Old Moldie boy' comment. He was actually fairly restrained in this chapter, lucky for Harry. Despite appearing calm to Ginny, Dumbledore is upset — and it's only going to get worse as the rest of Moldie's plan unfolds. How's that for a teaser? Thanks for your review!  
**Ted M. Hammett: **Rhys has shown his hand now…or has he? grins evily Thanks for reviewing!  
**Eyes of sky:** I know exactly what you meant by wandering, but I just can't seem to stop myself. Sometimes it seems like the only way to work in all the clues without making them seem like clues. Does that make sense? I tried to move forward to the action in the cave. Thanks for reviewing!  
**wvchemteach:** Hope you found the ending here just as evil as in the last chapter! Rhys has been acting strange. Now we sort of know why. While it's believable for Dumbledore not to tell the children in his care about all of his plans, it does lead to trouble. Maybe in book six, he'll keep Harry informed. Thanks for your review!  
**Nimbirosa:** At least Harry tried telling Ginny where he was going, not that she's likely to figure that out any time soon. Thanks for writing a review!  
**Iluvatar:** Thanks!  
**mysticruby:** Thanks, I hope you continue to enjoy the story!  
**Lady of the Dragons2:** Thanks for reviewing! This chapter had even more evil in it, but not such a cliffhanger ending. Harry's not the only one that Dumbledore keeps in the dark.  
**Insanity-of-the-owl:** At least he didn't die. Thanks for your review!  
**rosepetal13:** Bella was just playing some insane game until the real Voldemort showed up. Thanks for writing!  
**Lioness Blackfire:** Thanks for your reviews! You're very kind. I'm so glad you liked the story so far. Up until 5 a.m. reading…I do that all the time, too. I loved reading your ideas and theories. No more worries about Snape, he survived this time. I also have a soft spot for Draco, but as for redeeming him, I'm not that sure. He makes such a great bad boy! The answer to your question is no. However, the tanglewood tree experiment did accomplish something. It might not be too obvious right now. At least, I hope it isn't.  
**Mrs. Sakura Potter:** I agree, Hermione was rude to say that about Harry. It's not really a weakness, but it is an easy trait to exploit. From what Harry's seen in this story, he had no reason to suspect Rhys. Dumbledore trusts him. Thanks for writing!  
**Enter The Lion:** I agree that, in the books, Harry has so far been too consumed by confrontations with scary people to think much about romance. I'm also sure the real conflict with Voldemort will be very different from the one in this chapter. However, I'm convinced JKR will develop Ginny's character into a romantic figure for Harry eventually. If not book six, then maybe book seven…possibly during the train ride home.As fun as it is to speculate in fanfiction, we'll find out the real story next July! Thanks for reviewing!  
**GryffRavHuffSlythendor:** Thanks! 'Tis evil…and more evil this way comes!  
**Sara:** Thanks for saying all those nice things! I agree that JKR is developing the Harry and Ginny relationship along the same lines as James and Lily. Was your theory about the cave right? If so, it's not that stupid, is it?  
**Lady of Masbolle:** Thanks for the book recommendation! I haven't read the "Mists…" book you mentioned, but it's now on my list. I liked your keyword idea! And among your other suggestions is the one that's been in the storyboard for a long time now. It's fun when that happens. You'll know it when you read it.  
**DeadSerenity:** I'm so sorry about the cliffhanger last chapter. Thanks for saying the story is improving. I'm still learning so there are plenty of rough patches. Five hours…yes, it was incentive for me. Then the holidays hit…Thanks for writing!  
**cariluv:** Oh, there's more. I appreciate you asking. Thanks for reviewing!  
**sarah:** Thanks for your review! Sorry to be slow posting. None of my excuses are any good.  
**Jastul:** Sorry to be slow. Thanks for your reviewing!  
**spike blade:** Thanks! I will.  
**KandiG86:** Thanks for your review! Aurora has always been a bit unpredictable, but this time it wasn't her fault. In my mind, Ginny and Harry are both the sort who act first and think later…especially Harry.  
**time/pyscho:** Thanks for writing a review!  
**Jessa:** Thanks, I appreciate it!  
**alexi:** That was a very nice thing to say. Thanks!  
**Harry9970:** There…at least now you know Snape wasn't helping Draco. The rest of the Snape/Draco sidestory has been moved to another chapter. Thanks for reviewing!  
**DysfuntionalPunkrocker:** Thanks! I appreciate you saying that. And…that's how I feel about writing reviews sometimes so I thank you for writing anyway.  
**Silver Warrior:** Harry's even further from escaping now, but not all hope is lost. Not yet anyway. Thanks for your review!  
**totally stellar:** I hope you liked the fight. Thanks for reviewing!  
**OCDbouHarry1234:** Thanks! I will update soon.  
**Lozenger-14-44:** Yes, there are more chapters. Thanks for asking. Thanks for writing a review!  
**john menefee 21:** Thanks for saying that!

A/N: Thanks for reading! Please review!


	31. A Doubtful Alliance

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks for reading my story. In addition to the usual characters from J.K.R., I borrowed a line everyone might recognize from _The Prisoner of Azkaban_. Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter. Thanks for writing them. I love reading them!

Chapter 31  
A Doubtful Alliance

When Ginny arrived for breakfast, the crowd in the Great Hall was buzzing, first with the news that Harry Potter had somehow disappeared during the night, then with speculation about Professor Snape's mysterious arrival in the Hogwarts' infirmary.

Flanked by Alison and Colin, who had dithered about their Magical Creatures project all the way from Gryffindor Tower, Ginny tried to ignore the disquieting clamor. She took a seat and stared at the teapot. Most mornings, Harry fixed her a cup of tea, just the way she liked it, then let her have her morning Zen moment. Her stomach clenched as she pushed away the thought that this was the first of a lot of mornings without Harry to fix her tea.

"Coffee?" Colin asked with a sympathetic look. "You probably didn't get much sleep." He took a big bite of a jam-covered scone, keeping his eyes on her as he chewed.

"No thanks," Ginny answered, a little too brightly. Flipping her hair over her shoulder, she put some food on her plate, then poured herself a cup of tea and stared into it, but it just wasn't the same.

Seamus and Dean sat down in the seats next to Alison. Ginny listened without comment while Alison told the boys the story about Harry for the third time. Even though she'd been the one who first raised the alarm about Harry's disappearance, Ginny just kept gazing at the caramel colored liquid in her cup.

Giving a knowing nod, Alison continued with the news. "…then Sophie Moon told Susan Bones who told Padma Patil who told her sister that Snape's come back to Hogwarts…and he's been muttering something about Harry."

Ginny's facial expression remained calm, but anyone bothering to look closer would realize she was now stirring her eggs. Inside, her thoughts churned. This news about Snape…Dumbledore must have known it last night. The fact he didn't tell her made it clear that he had no intention of allowing her to help rescue Harry. The old wizard must still think of her as that idiot eleven-year-old without enough sense to recognize that her diary was dangerous.

The moment the rescue party had arrived, Dumbledore had shuffled her brother, Hermione, and herself off to bed, with some rather condescending assurances. She'd tried to content herself with the fact that at least someone was trying to find him, but it wasn't good enough. Inside her a coil was tightening and it was going to explode at some point if she didn't find some way to help Harry.

Alison was still droning on about Snape.

Resisting the urge to hex her study partner for repeating herself, Ginny pushed away her uneaten breakfast and tried to think of what she could do.

A soft tap on her shoulder startled Ginny out of her dark thoughts. She turned around and saw Parvati and Lavender giving her identical pitying looks.

Clucking her tongue and shaking her head, Parvati asked, "What's Harry gotten himself into now?"

Knowing where this was probably headed, Ginny shuddered and said, "I really don't know." She usually tolerated their romantic advice fairly well. In fact, she often found it amusing, but not now.

The older girls must have misread her shudder. After exchanging knowing looks, Parvati and Lavender turned back to Ginny. In a tone usually reserved for the first years, Lavender said quietly, "We know you've been busy with your O.W.L.s lately, but the first rule of being a good girlfriend is to always know what your man is doing." She patted Ginny's shoulder gently as though she was trying to comfort her.

Ginny cringed. She hated it when these two got onto the subject of 'how to treat your man.' And Harry wasn't some pet puppy who'd slipped off his leash.

In an equally annoying sympathetic tone, Parvati added, "Otherwise, he could be running around with other girls behind your back."

Narrowing her eyes, Ginny said, "So your theory is that Harry has run off with another girl." She pretended to look around suspiciously, and asked, "Exactly who else is missing this morning?"

Lavender shrugged and Parvati had the grace to look uncomfortable.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ginny could see Dean and Seamus looking their way. Rising to her feet and fixing the girls with what she hoped was a dignified glare, Ginny said, "Only a girlfriend who can't trust her _man_ would always need to know what he's doing…and Harry is completely trustworthy."

She didn't want to discuss it with them, but her own theory about what had happened to Harry was far more sinister than the one these two had conceived.

She brushed past Dean's attempt to speak with her, as her next move clicked into place inside her head. It was what any truly self-respecting girlfriend would do. With one eye out for professors and interfering housemates, Ginny snuck into the infirmary to confront Professor Snape. If he was saying Harry's name, then she figured that he was the man to talk to.

Strictly speaking, sneaking wasn't necessary. Although she wasn't scheduled to help this morning, she'd been working as one of Madam Pomfrey's student assistants for months.

Ginny needn't have worried about Madam Pomfrey's reaction. She showed no surprise as she hurried past, carrying a tray of potions and salves. "Plenty of new arrivals, Miss Weasley. Thank goodness, you're here."

She set Ginny to work dosing a group of second year Hufflepuffs with Pepper-Up Potion. They were all complaining of a general feeling of malaise. Out the side of her mouth, Ginny asked, "So…is it Potions or Herbology?"

Swallowing the spoonful of medicine with a smirk, the boy in front of her answered, "Fire Thistles." He looked meaningfully at the patients occupying the beds, slathered in orange burn ointment and bandages.

Ginny nodded. "Bed rest, I should think, don't you?" Calling to the matron, who was muttering in the storeroom, she asked, "Would you say this group needs bed rest, Madam Pomfrey?"

Stepping back into the room with an armload of blankets, the matron looked over the sorry lot in front of her. Many of them were moving their lips as though uttering a quiet prayer. "Right, then. You heard, Miss Weasley. Mind you go straight to your dormitories and rest. I'll contact your Professor about your absence." She went in her office and closed the door as the 'flu' patients fled the infirmary.

Ignoring the curious stares of the burn patients, Ginny squared her shoulders and walked toward the screened in bed near the window. This had to be Professor Snape. The infirmary suddenly seemed very quiet. She could hear her footsteps echo as she slipped behind the divider.

A pile of grimy clothes occupied the chair next to his bed. Professor Snape seemed to be sleeping fitfully. His face was bruised and swollen. Healing lotion was slathered thickly over his forehead, presumably covering a laceration. Although the cut had probably healed instantly, the lotion would prevent any residual scarring. His skin was gray, probably due to enduring the Cruciatus Curse, according to what she'd read.

Madam Pomfrey came around the screen and made a small gasp. "Oh, it's you, Miss Weasley. I thought you'd gone. Don't you have classes this morning?"

Ginny answered carefully. "I…I do have History of Magic, but…shouldn't someone sit with him? That must've been a bad head wound…" She looked at the busy matron. "I could stay. My friend takes good notes."

With a kind smile, the matron said, "Of course, you can stay." Raising an eyebrow, she added, "I didn't know you were that fond of Professor Snape." She set about explaining to Ginny the regimen of potions and charms prescribed for him. The list was frighteningly long. "It's very important that nothing upsets him. If he wakes up, best come get me."

With that Madam Pomfrey left Ginny alone to stand her vigil over Snape. She put the filthy clothes in a bag under his bed and settled into the chair. For a long time, she just sat there, listening to the labored breathing of her Potions Professor and fingering the small necklace that Harry had given her for Christmas.

Harry's words came back to her. _"…The question you should ask yourself is do you want a boyfriend that you could lose in this war…or worse…a boyfriend that could put you in danger."_

Then he'd given her the necklace…to protect her.

Harry wanted to protect everyone. Hermione thought it was a weakness, his saving people thing. To Ginny that was one of the things she loved about Harry, his generous, protective spirit. He really was willing to put his life on the line, not just for those he cared about, but for everyone.

She loved that he could still be that way after the horrible things he'd been through, the awful way some people had treated him. And despite the fact that he knew he might die fighting for an ungrateful world, he fought anyway. The spirit within him refused to give up.

Closing her eyes, she conjured the image of Harry the night he had given her the necklace. He stood at twilight in the snowy garden of the Burrow, his face open and sincere, his eyes craving something he couldn't name, he'd offered to stop seeing her in order to keep her safer.

In her heart, she knew she'd never be safer without Harry. And someplace even deeper, she knew she'd never give up trying to find him.

Telling herself that she shouldn't dwell on memories, Ginny decided to read the book of tracking spells that Hermione had loaned her. She reached inside her rucksack to pull out the book and her hand brushed against her mirror. She took it out along with the book, although she knew it was useless.

She thought about Ron physically restraining her the night before. Aurora was the key. Clearly, the phoenix knew something.

Looking at the little mirror in her hand, she asked between clenched teeth, "Where are you, Harry?"

Snape stirred at her quiet words. His hands fisted as he murmured, "Hmm…Potter…help."

Ginny was suddenly alert. Did he mean Harry needed help? Had he left Harry somewhere suffering the Cruciatus…or worse? Her breath caught painfully in her throat at the thought. She felt like shaking the man, screaming at him to wake up and tell her.

Instead she sat back down on the edge of her seat and willed her heartbeat to slow down. Looking in the mirror, she smoothed her hair and cast another glamour charm on her red, puffy eyes. So far, she'd been able to do all her crying in private. If Dumbledore or Pomfrey — or even Ron — thought she was falling apart emotionally, they'd shove her into bed with a large dose of Tranquility Potion.

Lifting her chin a little higher, she tried to adopt a mask of calm. She wasn't going to let anyone kick her out of the infirmary. Not until she'd had a few words herself with Professor Snape. His mutterings were currently the best hope she had. She settled her book on her lap, and began reading.

Ron and Hermione showed up in the afternoon and pulled her away from Snape's cubicle.

"Are you mad? You missed lunch!" Ron asked in a hiss. "And we find you here…hanging around Snape's bedside…what are you thinking? Harry's gone missing!"

Her eyes stung with tears at his words. Looking anxiously at Madam Pomfrey's office, she grabbed the front of Ron's robes and dragged him further away from the open door toward a few empty beds. Hermione followed them.

"Sh…you'll ruin everything." Ginny felt her face flush as she spoke. "Madam Pomfrey thinks I want to watch over him out of _concern_ for our dear Professor, but…" She looked toward the matron's office before she spoke again in a whisper. "It's true…Snape keeps saying Harry's name…Potter…help." She mimicked Snape's delirious words.

"Still you can't spend all your time here," Hermione said, handing her a sandwich wrapped in a napkin. "I'll…I'll take a turn."

Hermione's jaw was set into a determined square. She looked perfectly composed, making Ginny wonder if her friend might be wearing a couple of glamour charms herself.

Ron looked from one to other, incredulous. "It's Snape!"

Ignoring him, Ginny grabbed Hermione in a quick, relieved hug. Rubbing her face to wake up, Ginny said, "I've made a list of possible passwords, Ron. While Hermione watches over Snape, we can break into Dumbledore's office." She unrolled the parchment she'd been working on that morning.

"You're both off your nut!" Ron shouted, pulling his hair for emphasis. "What would we want to do that for!"

All three Gryffindors turned their heads toward Madam Pomfrey's office, but no one emerged. Both girls glared at Ron.

Sighing loudly, Ron repeated his question in a whisper, folding his arms in front of him defensively.

"Because…" Hermione whispered back. "That's where Harry's phoenix was last seen. It's obvious Aurora knows something about what's happened to him."

Nodding, Ginny added, "And we may not have much time. The Order is meeting this afternoon…Professor Dumbledore is bound to be out of his office for that." She didn't explain how she knew.

Hermione looked at her kindly and said, "I'm sure by now, Professor Dumbledore has figured out where Aurora wants the rescue party to look. He's probably already sent someone. What good will it do for us to get in the middle of things?"

"I'm not giving up. Dumbledore won't tell us anything," Ginny said, hiccuping softly as she tried to keep the sob in her throat from coming out. "Ha…Harry's always grumbling about it. He doesn't tell him anything either."

And if the Headmaster wouldn't tell Harry, what hope did a skinny fifth year have of gaining his trust?

"We'll have to find out on our own." She swallowed hard and lifted her face to her brother. "Harry would do the same for any one of us."

Ron and Hermione exchanged a look. Ginny was aware of some sort of silent agreement being reached over the top of her head.

"I'll stay with Professor Snape until dinner," Hermione said. "You'll have to show me his medicines so Madam Pomfrey doesn't get upset when she finds out we've switched."

In a resigned monotone, Ron said, "And I'll help you break into Dumbledore's office."

Ginny grinned and threw her arms around him. "I knew you would."

"Ah…that's all right then," Ron answered stiffly, patting her back lightly.

Half an hour later, Ginny suspected that Ron was only humoring her because he figured they didn't have a hope of actually breaking into the Headmaster's office. The password McGonagall used the night before had already been changed, and even after reaching the end of her rather comprehensive list of sweets, without any success getting past Dumbledore's gargoyle, Ron was still patient with her.

With a frustrated growl, Ginny threw the useless scroll of parchment at the statue. "Can't you think of anything, Ron?"

He picked up her list and read it slowly. "I think you've made a fairly complete listing of sweets here, Ginny."

Suddenly exhausted, she leaned her head against his arm. "What's next then?" she asked softly.

"I don't know…maybe it's a Muggle sweet. Professor Dumbledore can be a bit…er…off sometimes."

"Do you know any?" Ginny could never understand Harry's love of Muggle treats. They didn't do anything except taste good.

"There's those sherbet lemons the Headmaster's always offering. Then there's that one Harry always asks the trolley lady for…don't know why, she's never going to have anything Muggle."

"Mars Bars!" Ginny shouted. Sure enough the gargoyle stirred to life, opening the stairway to the Headmaster's office.

Ron held onto his sister's arm. "Do you really want to do this? Someone could be inside. How do we know Harry's phoenix is even still there?"

She jerked her arm out of his grasp and started up the stairs.

Ron followed, still objecting in whispered tones. "We…we could get expelled!"

"We won't," Ginny said as she moved up the stairs. "If we get caught, we'll pretend we came to ask if they had any word about Harry…we'll say we found the gargoyle already open."

She could see the Headmaster's door standing open at the top of the stairs. Hurrying in, she ignored the comments coming from the various portraits and walked straight toward the phoenix perch behind Dumbledore's desk. Looking magnificent side by side, Fawkes and Aurora sat there calmly, as if nothing had happened. Ginny walked over and stroked the gold and red feathers on Aurora's head. As always, it soothed her own ruffled feelings.

Calling back over her shoulder, she said, "Come on, Ron. We'll go together."

"Where are you thinking of going, Miss Weasley?" Professor Dumbledore said, straightening up from the fireplace and brushing soot off his shoulders with a wave of his fingers.

A dark figure followed him through the fireplace. Ginny recognized him as Harry's fencing instructor, Rhys. He stood calmly behind Dumbledore, without saying anything.

"I…I wanted to see if Aurora was still…er…that is, I thought…" Ginny struggled to explain.

Dumbledore walked over to the phoenix perch and stroked the feathers on Fawkes' head. "Harry's phoenix is still here, Miss Weasley. As you see, there is no longer any reason to grab her tail." He looked at her knowingly.

Ginny relaxed. The headmaster seemed to know why she'd been so anxious to return to his office so why make excuses. He didn't seem too worried about her rule breaking.

Continuing in the same kindly tone, Dumbledore said, "We must take this as a good sign. Harry is a powerful and resourceful wizard. It's entirely possible that he'll return to us under his own power."

Rhys cleared his throat, drawing Ginny's notice. Seeming pale and tired, he averted his eyes. It occurred to her that he might have been a part of last night's rescue attempt, or maybe they were planning on going today. Perhaps she could persuade him to tell her. She smiled at him encouragingly, but she couldn't catch his eye.

For a moment, he seemed about to say something to Dumbledore, but Aurora interrupted. The phoenix jumped from the perch onto Ginny's shoulder and trilled a high, sweet tune.

Heartened by the sound and the Headmaster's reassurance, Ginny turned back to Ron. He was still hanging around the entrance to the office as though barred from the room. "Thank you, Professor," Ginny said, moving back toward her brother. She hoped to quietly walk out with Harry's phoenix, but when she reached the door, Aurora fluttered back to rejoin Fawkes on his perch.

Whether it was disappointment at the loss of that warm press of feathers or panic at facing an uncertain future, Ginny felt frozen to the carpet.

Ron put his arm around his sister. Before she had a chance to resist, he gently led her down the stairs.

They were just humoring her, Professor Dumbledore and Ron. It was sweet of them, but incredibly annoying all the same. They expected her to take the fact that Harry's phoenix had calmed down to mean that Harry was out of danger, when it might mean that any number of things.

Aurora had always been a bit unpredictable. Maybe she'd just forgotten Harry was missing, or maybe she was distracted by Fawkes. She could have simply decided she liked Dumbledore's bird treats and Fawkes' perch too much to leave. It didn't matter. Harry's bird may have given up looking for him, but Ginny wouldn't.

"I promise not to tell Mum you skived off your lessons today," Ron said, still draping an arm around her shoulders reassuringly. "But at least eat some dinner before you go back to the infirmary."

Ginny utterly refused, insisting that Snape could wake up any minute.

But it was several days before Professor Snape finally recovered enough to wake up and several more before he could answer anyone's questions coherently. Then he swore he had no knowledge of Harry's disappearance.

By then, Ginny was out of her mind. Even in the daylight, wild thoughts about Harry's fate traipsed through her mind unbidden. Torture, blood and cruelty…this wasn't how Harry's life was supposed to be. He was a normal sixteen-year-old boy. He should be worried about Quidditch, and well…her.

But when had Harry's life ever been normal? She went through the motions of her own routine. She went to class, helped in the infirmary and let Ron and Hermione take turns comforting her. She tried to keep her inner turmoil to herself, but it wasn't easy.

* * *

Harry ran as fast as he could over the rough ground of the Forbidden Forest. Above him, dark branches groaned and swayed. Beneath his feet, thick, half buried tree roots came alive, grabbing at him as he passed by, willing his feet to maintain a breakneck pace. Dozens of black robed figures trailed effortlessly behind, laughing.

Unaccountably, one of them appeared in the path in front of him. Harry tried to stop, but couldn't. In a blast of smoke and ash, he was surrounded. Faceless Death Eaters pressed against him on all sides, without any sign of hesitation or fear. Soon he was gasping for air. He called out, but no sound came. He reached for his sword, but it had vanished. He couldn't breathe. They were smothering him.

When the scene stopped spinning, he was looking down from above, as if he'd climbed a tree and was only an observer now. The hooded figures were crowding around something — a white light of some sort. They slowly backed away. Thinking he must be dead, Harry steeled himself to look down on his lifeless body, but as his attackers stepped away, he saw the pale figure of Ginny, her red hair hidden by the hood of her gray sweatshirt, her brown eyes staring sightless at the night sky.

Harry woke up, soaked with sweat, and out of breath. It was the same every time he slept. Whether he dreamt something wonderful or had a nightmare, his sleep was as vivid as if he'd really lived it. "I hate it here!" he shouted at the white, empty walls of the cave. The only answer was the hollow echo of his own voice.

Pulling his blanket close around him, he tried to gather the strength to conjure breakfast and face his morning routine. At least he hoped it was morning. He had no way of really knowing since the cave was always lit with a soft ambient light.

Niniane came and went as she pleased, most often lost in some mournful fantasy of her own.

At first Harry had spent every waking moment looking for a way to escape. He barely took the time to eat or sleep. Breaking out drove his every action until one day, in a fit of despondency, he had dropped to the floor, and let the cold stone leech the last bits of resistance from his body. He'd forced himself to admit--even if it _was_ just to himself--that he couldn't get out. The exit was sealed from the outside, and boring through the stone simply wasn't possible.

His many escape attempts had utterly consumed him. He felt horrible. Hungry. Cold. Filthy. But what did it matter? He stared blankly at the cave ceiling high above him, trying not to think of the endless years of nothing that stretched in front of him like a dark bottomless pit.

Then Niniane had floated into the cave and hovered over him. Looking down at his disheveled and despairing figure, she said serenely, "Ah…there he is. The man born to be with me forever."

Harry had burst out laughing, and once he'd started he couldn't stop.

Niniane had floated away in disgust, leaving him alone, but Harry didn't care.

This was never meant to be his life. He wasn't born to do this and he knew it with every fiber of his being. Whatever was written in the stars for Harry James Potter, it didn't involve being forever hidden from the world with an insane ghost. The prophecy, his parents' sacrifice, the Potter box opening for him, they hadn't all happened so he could be shut away.

Right then, he knew that this wasn't the end. Something more was bound to happen. He'd make his way back to his life…his real destiny…all of his friends…to Ginny. In the meantime, if he was going to get out of the cave, and escape any Death Eaters left to stand watch, then he'd have to start preparing.

For the next few days, Harry began to take better care of himself. He'd been conjuring food and water since last summer so that wasn't a problem. Now he took the time to transfigure some things into comfortable furnishings, and dug through his rucksack for supplies. The cave's strange energy helped. As though the white walls around him conducted magic, Harry found conjuring and transfiguring surprisingly easy.

Soon he was living in reasonable accommodations. He'd even given himself an illusionary view of Hagrid's hut and the forest beyond. He put himself on a schedule, although he had no sense of night or day. Each day, he did a physical workout, then trained with his sword. He even studied the course books he'd brought with him, telling himself that when he found his way out of the cave, he'd be ready.

All of these preparations kept his mind off the despair that threatened to swallow him whole if he would let it. Instead he kept his mind on the future…a future beyond the cave.

* * *

Gryffindor Tower was fairly busting with bodies for a Saturday afternoon. With Hogsmeade visits still banned, older and younger Gryffindors were jammed into every available corner. Not that everyone was studying. A noisy Exploding Snap tournament was contending for space with three serious looking second years intent on making their toads race across the carpet. 

As soon as Ginny walked down the stairs, the room seemed to close in around her. The loud indistinguishable chatter and the acrid smell of smoking cards seemed to take away all the oxygen. She would have left, but she'd promised to meet Ron and Hermione here, and they were nowhere in sight.

Crossing to the window, Ginny halted while the toad racers passed. After some fumbling, she released the latch and threw open the window. Dark-blue clouds gathered in the distance. The air hung heavy and still, but Ginny was relieved to feel the coolness on her face as she leaned over the ledge.

If they didn't have any news about Harry soon, she was going after Tom herself. Memories from her first year haunted her still…his twisted ideas and his cruel laugh…making her do things…those poor roosters. And that had been his sixteen year old self. What might he be doing to Harry now? She felt the wind begin to move over her cheeks, stirring her hair.

Keeping her focus on the Forbidden Forest, she heard someone walk up behind her. Looking back over her shoulder, she saw Ron and Hermione.

"Ginny…" Hermione began, then broke off. A frown of concern overcast her face.

A brief flicker of light warned of the violence of the approaching storm. The light caught Ginny's attention. She leaned further out to get a better look. Another bright spidery bolt of lightening was answered by a distant crackle of thunder.

Ginny heard Ron take a deep breath, clap his hands together and say, "Well…er…looks like it's going to be too wet for Quidditch. We'll have to practice tomorrow instead." He continued in a self-satisfied tone. "I reckon this is a good day for the library."

Those dark-blue clouds began to shroud the forest like a Concealment Charm. Keeping her eyes on the darkening sky, Ginny willed the storm to come closer and break the gathering tension. She wasn't sure how much longer she could just wait.

In an understanding tone, Hermione said, "Forget about coming to the library with us, Ginny. It's Saturday. You…you could use some extra rest."

Ron and Hermione sounded nervous.Their voices seemed to be coming from a distance. Ginny knew they were worried about Harry, just as much as she was, but right now, that wasn't much of a comfort.

Ginny pulled her head inside and looked from one to the other. "Anything could be happening to him," she said. "I can't just…take a nap."

Confusion flashed across Ron's face, then he protested, "You can't spend all your time worrying either."

Hermione added, "Ron's right. We've done everything we can think of…there's nothing more any of us can do."

In a softer tone, Ron continued, "You look like hell, Ginny. What would Mum and Dad say…or Bill? They'd be all over me for not looking out for you." Pity poured out of every syllable as he pleaded with his sister. "Please…try to put it out of your mind…he'll probably come back on his own."

"Don't look at me like that." Ginny said, taking a step away from her brother.

Catching her arm, Ron said, "I can't stand to see you like this."

In the distance, another flare of light was followed by a drum roll of thunder. Ginny pulled her arm loose and said, "It…it isn't just me. You've both been working full stop on finding a way to help." She paused as a couple of her dorm mates passed by, giggling at something.

"Harry would want you to take care of yourself," Hermione said as a clap of thunder sounded closer.

Ginny's voice shook as she answered, "_Harry_…wouldn't sit back and wait for Dumbledore to handle things." She folded her arms in front of her defensively. "When you were petrified and I was trapped in the Chamber, Harry didn't wait around to see what someone else could do."

A blast of wind, made the window sash bang against the building and Ginny's hair fly around her face. She tucked it impatiently behind her ears without breaking her tirade. "He took action. And may I remind you, Ron, you helped him…any way that you could. I just think we need to do the same."

Despite the cool rush of air and the fresh splatter of rain finally beginning to fall through the open window behind her, Ginny suddenly felt like she'd suffocate if she stayed there. She needed to do something…anything…even if it was the wrong thing.

As she turned on her heel and fled, she heard Hermione say, "Let her go, Ron. She just needs some time alone."

Taking the stairs two at a time, Ginny resisted the impulse to run out of the castle and into the rain. Instead, she raced herself to the infirmary. The thunderstorm had arrived, relentless and implacable, by the time she walked through the entryway. Thankfully, the beds were empty, except for the screened in bed, furthest from the door.

In defiance of the storm's rolling drumbeat, Ginny slowed her steps and arranged her face into a mask of calm. She'd have to appear composed or she'd have no chance of talking to Professor Snape. Ginny knew he claimed to have no information about Harry's disappearance, but she also knew he'd spent hours speaking with Professor Dumbledore when he first regained consciousness. He must know something.

Rain pounded the glass windowpanes overhead in thick, punishing drops amidst splinters of white bolts of lightning. It felt oddly satisfying. The crashes of thunder hid her footsteps, as she walked deliberately toward Professor Snape's enclosure, prepared to confront him about what he knew, no matter how many points that cost Gryffindor. She'd rouse him from his sleep if necessary.

Nothing could have prepared her for what she saw as she rounded the screen. The Potions Master slept soundly, as expected, probably under the influence of a variety of potions, but he wasn't alone. Rhys, Harry's fencing instructor, stood at the foot of the bed, wand in hand. His face was a portrait of misery as he took aim at Snape's sleeping frame. Flashes of lightning flickered on his frozen form.

Thankful for the cover of the storm, Ginny drew her wand and shouted, "_Expelliarmus!_" A clap of thunder hit almost directly outside the window, swallowing up the noise of Rhys' wand skittering across the polished floor.

The fencing instructor staggered backward and turned to face her. Then covered his face with his hands.

Neither of them spoke as another branch of white lit the glass overhead, followed instantly by a thunderous roll.

"Take your hands off your face, Mister…um…" Ginny couldn't think of his last name. Harry always called him Rhys. She kept her wand trained on him.

"Powell," he answered softly, dropping his hands to his side. "But you can call me Rhys…Harry always did."

Ginny waved her wand slightly to remind him that she was the one holding a weapon. "What are you doing here?" she asked, glancing at the figure still fast asleep in the bed. "Why did you have your wand pointed at Professor Snape?"

Rhys closed his eyes and pressed his lips together for a moment, then he said, "I was performing a healing charm." He put his hands out toward her, palms up, in a placating gesture. "I…I thought it might speed his recovery. Why…what could you possibly be thinking?" His tone became incredulous.

Holding her wand even more deliberately, Ginny said, "You must think everyone around you is blind." She arched an eyebrow slowly, for emphasis. "I know what I saw and you couldn't possibly have meant it to be a healing charm."

"Please…lower your wand," Rhys pleaded, giving Snape a nervous look. In a whisper he said, "I'll deny it. No one will believe you."

"Oh…they'll believe me." With a small smile, she pressed her advantage. "Maybe you'd like to find out which one of us they'll believe. Ever taken Veritaserum?"

Some of the desperation Ginny had seen on Rhys' face when she first arrived was back. But it didn't soften her resolve. She nodded toward the array of potion bottles on Snape's bedside table. "And I've been helping administer Snape's potions and healing charms ever since he arrived…you wouldn't be helping him by adding another one of your own. Everyone knows that." She paused to see what effect this had on him.

Rhys didn't argue. He just looked lost.

Sighing, Ginny said, "Where shall we start?"

"I'm not answering your questions." His voice sounded flat.

Whether it was her own distress or the mad noise from the storm, Ginny acted with reckless abandon. She uttered a spell that instantly held Rhys immobile in the nearest chair.

Head rigid, Rhys asked, "Where'd you learn that one?"

Deciding quickly not to tell him that her Mum had used the spell whenever she'd wanted to give one of her children a haircut, Ginny moved around behind him. It wouldn't do for him to see how nervous she was. Deepening her voice to sound more impressive, Ginny said, "Never mind where I learned it. You'll answer my questions or you'll answer Professor Dumbledore's." She thought for a moment, then she added, "…maybe we should just see if the Headmaster is available now."

Reluctantly, Rhys asked, "What do you want to know?"

Trying to ignore her heart's rapid pounding and the storm crashing outside the window, Ginny's thoughts flashed on the driving force behind all her actions. "What I really want to know is what happened to Harry…."

She noticed Rhys' shoulders tensing and a flush spreading up his neck as she continued, "but you aren't likely to have the answer to that…or are you? Were you in the search party?" She moved to face him so she could watch his expressions as he answered her. "Let's start with why you would aim your wand at Professor Snape while he's asleep."

Rhys dropped his gaze to the floor and was quiet for a long time.

The thunder had become a distant mumbling. Ginny listened to the rain on the windows and waited.

Finally, Rhys lifted his eyes to her. They were dark and desperate. "You don't need to know anything about me. It will only put you in danger."

"So…now you want me to believe that you only have my best interests at heart." She tapped her wand impatiently in her hand.

"Your parents, Arthur and Molly, wouldn't want you to be involved…I can't bring you into any of this."

"But…" Ginny prompted.

"But nothing."

"I have to know!" Ginny shouted, her voice an octave higher.

"Harry's gone. You should just accept it." Rhys frowned at her. "We're all caught up in something bigger than ourselves and we're powerless to stop it." Dropping his eyes again, his voice became deathly quiet as he continued. "I…I didn't mean to."

"Didn't mean to what?" Ginny asked impatiently, her voice still an octave higher than usual. Everything Rhys had said was so confusing. What made him so sure that Harry was really gone? Even Dumbledore admitted there was still hope…and she was pretty sure that Aurora was still in the Headmaster's office.

With a light coming into his eyes, Rhys looked at Ginny and said, "Let me go…keep quiet about seeing me with Snape…and I'll help you look for Harry."

Ginny put her wand right under his chin and asked, "Why would I trust you…to even tell me the truth?"

Suddenly Rhys' eyes opened wide and he said, "I _was _in the search party…we looked everywhere for Harry, but we found no trace." His face looked strained with effort as if he was struggling to escape. "Let me go…say nothing to anyone…and I'll take you there."

Ginny stared him down. "You must have been a Slytherin." Without stopping to consider that she might not be thinking too clearly, she tried to calculate the risks involved if she went with him. She rationalized that if he'd really meant to hurt Snape, he could have done it a hundred times over…same with Harry. They'd worked alone together for months. Dumbledore obviously trusted him — even her parents trusted him for that matter.

But she'd definitely seen him with his wand pointed at Snape and a grim expression in his eyes. Still…he was the only one who'd offered to help her. Everyone else just wanted her to…keep safe. She couldn't go on doing nothing.

"You want to know where he went…and I can show you." Rhys bit his lower lip and then continued, "It's only fair to tell you…there isn't anything there…but I'll show it to you anyway."

Ginny considered his offer. He would make an unlikely ally, but at this point, he was her only choice. "All right," she said finally. "I'll go with you…but I need a few things from my dorm first." At least she could take Harry's Invisibility Cloak and the Portkey he'd made for her.

For the first time, Rhys smiled. "I'm not going anywhere." With a questioning look, he added, "Unless you'd like to turn me loose."

"I…I would…" Ginny smirked at him. "But then you'd be gone when I came back."

Rhys smirked back at her, and asked, "Don't you trust me?"

The storm had settled into a quiet chatter of rain on the glass. The sky remained a relentless gray. Keeping her eyes on the design it made across the glass, Ginny said, almost to herself, "It seems I don't have any other choice."

Professor Snape gave a snort, drawing attention to his pale, drawn face. Even under the influence of all his potions, he seemed in pain. Those Death Eaters must have really worked him over. Although it had already been a couple of weeks, he hadn't finished healing.

That gave Ginny an idea. She rounded on Rhys, releasing him from the haircut spell. "Let me see your arm," she demanded, her wand trained on his face.

Rhys stretched as though he'd held still for a long time instead of just a few minutes. In a lame gesture, he held his right arm forward.

Ginny's lips drew into a firm line. "Your left arm…and roll up your sleeve."

Undoing his cuff button, he sighed heavily. Holding out his arm, he asked, "You don't honestly think I'm a Death Eater, do you?"

Without answering him, Ginny ran her wand over Rhys' unmarked forearm with a muttered, "_Finite Incantatum!_" Then she looked at him carefully. The deep circles under his eyes were just as pronounced as her own would be without the glamour charms covering them. He looked miserable.

It occurred to her that Rhys was every bit as upset about Harry's disappearance as she was. Somehow that made her feel better about trusting him now. But why was he so affected? Had the time spent teaching Harry made him a friend? Not sure how to phrase her question, she began, "What…"

Then a frightened shout announced Remus Lupin's arrival in the infirmary. Ginny and Rhys stuck their heads around the screen. Both gasped at the sight of Lupin, soaked to the skin, rushing toward a bed. Clasped tightly in his arms, unconscious, bleeding and just as wet, was Harry Potter.

Ginny's heart caught in her throat at the sight, whether from exultation or anguish, she couldn't tell. Even from this distance, Harry looked a mess. She took off running and reached the bed just as Lupin laid Harry down.

To Be Continued…

A/N: Notes to reviewers. Thanks!

**Nimbirosa:** Rhys has had plenty to be nervous about so thanks for saying that. Niniane's definitely not thinking straight. I don't know how you keep up with writing all of your extraordinary stories and reading, too, but I am glad that you do. Thanks for writing a review!  
**SillyGillie:** Thanks!  
**totallystellar:** Thanks for saying that. I wouldn't leave Harry locked up, would I? Ginny definitely wants to be in the search party. Thanks for writing!  
**Sabine Strohem-Moss:** Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you love cliffhangers because this chapter had another one. I know the misinterpretation of the prophecy was a real stretch from canon, but I think we might see something like it in the next book. (Of course, it won't be the misinterpretation I used.) Otherwise, why doesn't JKR just let everyone know the real prophecy? Or it could be nothing since the prophecy itself isn't hard to figure out. Anyway, we'll find out July 16th.  
**johnmenefee21:** I liked the betrayal and deception part, too. The illusions aren't finished. Thanks for your review!  
**Lady of Masbolle:** Hope you enjoyed visiting your grandparents. I loved reading all your ideas about the cave. It does have magical properties that Harry's just begun to notice. You won't have to wait long to find out more. Thanks for writing!  
**KandiG:** Thanks for your reviews. Locking Harry up felt a little evil, now that you mention it. The Snape thing should be cleared up in the next chapter. I'm glad that Rhys took you by surprise.  
**Nostalgic Hangover:** Thanks for saying all those nice things. I appreciate it.  
**spike blade:** Thanks for reviewing!  
**sarah:** Thanks. I'll try to update soon.  
**Lourdes:** Thanks for reviewing! Dumbledore was too late to rescue Harry this time. Thanks for saying that you're hoping to see my story finished. I _am_ working toward that goal. Unfortunately, I have many deadlines this time of year. Summer is better in so many ways.  
**mysticruby:** Thanks for writing! You're nice to say that!  
**Lady of the Dragon:** I'm glad you saw through the fake Ginny. And I like Snape, too. I wonder what JKR will do with him. She keeps repeating that Dumbledore trusts him, but he's so awful to Harry.  
**wyadra:** Thanks! I'll try.  
**moodyboy66:** Thanks for writing! I'm glad you liked the fight scene.  
**Kelly:** I'm pleased you saw through fake Ginny. Harry often acts first, thinks later. I'm sorry the updates are slow. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Javonne:** That was a very kind thing to say. As I'm sure you've found out by now, there must be thousands of great stories on for writing!  
**MsMissProngs:** If Aurora could get in there, she would have already. But there is hope for Harry yet. Would I just leave him there? Thanks for your review!  
**angieGS:** Thanks for your encouragement! A lot of people suspected Rhys.  
**Harry9970:** You couldn't have known, not really. Anyway, it was supposed to be a surprise. There's more about Rhys in this story. Thanks for writing!  
**krissygurl:** Thanks, I will!  
**SuzanneN:** I'm sorry to take so long to update. I'm trying to go faster. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Nathalie-z:** Thanks for saying that!  
**Silver Warrior:** I just hope JKR isn't one of those people. I want to point out that Harry had a big fight with a lot of Death Eaters and came out of it with a scraped arm. I think that speaks for itself. Thanks for your review and for the image of Ginny, armed with curses and hexes, facing that Inner Circle of Death Eaters. She could take them!  
**B19:** Thanks for all the nice things you wrote! I think Ginny is a great character, too. I hope we see more of her in the Half Blood Prince.  
**Bono-Rules:** Diolch yn fawr. I love Welsh stuff, too. Thanks for writing!  
**JakeTheSheepy:** I appreciate you letting me know. Thanks for writing a review!  
**Foxfur:** You could write this stuff. Those were all really good guesses. I enjoyed reading them. Thanks for writing!  
**BrittSchrick:** Sorry. Ginny is about to snap and do something rash. Thanks for reviewing!**FirePhoenix:** Thanks, I will!  
**Kaleena Mason:** You're not wrong. If fact, I'm glad to hear you picked up the clues. Thanks for writing a review!  
**HeartofGryffindor:** Thanks for all your kind comments. I appreciate it!  
**Jastul:** Thanks! I'll try to hurry the next update.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Please review!


	32. Up to No Good

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter.

Chapter 32  
Up to No Good

Ignoring the fact that Professor Lupin's wet robes were dripping on her feet, Ginny focused all of her attention on the figure in the infirmary bed. Harry's clothes were torn and dirty. His left arm hung at an unnatural angle and a deep red gash marred his cheek. Even though he was injured and unconscious, hope flared inside Ginny as she pressed her fingers to his neck. His pulse beat strong and steady.

Professor Lupin looked exhausted. Breathing heavily, he slumped into the bedside chair. In an anxious voice, he ordered, "Go get Madam Pomfrey, Ginny!"

"I'm not leaving," she answered matter of factly, not caring if she seemed disrespectful. She'd already cast a drying spell on Harry. Now she lifted her wand to run a diagnostic spell.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Rhys' determined nod. "I'll get her," he said, and hastened away.

"Maybe we should get him out of those filthy clothes," Lupin said, still looking wretched and cold himself.

Ginny cast a cleansing charm, and said softly, "We should wait for Madam Pomfrey."

Her diagnostic spell hadn't shown any internal bleeding or other life threatening conditions, but she was a novice. Madam Pomfrey would be able to tell for sure. Until then, Harry shouldn't be moved any more than was absolutely necessary.

As her eyes met Professor Lupin's, Ginny thought she heard a quiet sigh of relief come from the old werewolf. She smiled shyly, and said, "You found him."

A rush of relief coursed through her as she let the news soak in. She shuddered to think where they found him. Judging from his condition it must have been someplace frightful. But there'd be time to worry about that later. There'd be time for a lot of things later.

Then the infirmary door banged open forcefully. Madam Pomfrey bustled into the room and began to bark orders. Ginny had no more time for anything but fetching potions and supplies. Pulling screens around Harry's bed for privacy, they did what they could to tend to his wounds. Madam Pomfrey worked without comment, but her serious expression filled Ginny with dread, especially when Harry didn't wake up.

Ginny's heart lifted when Professor Dumbledore arrived, his blue eyes twinkling in a way she hadn't seen in a while. He watched Madam Pomfrey finish a series of healing spells. Then he asked, "What's the prognosis, Poppy?" in a tone that seemed to say he already knew the answer.

"He'll survive. None of his injuries appear to be life threatening," Madam Pomfrey said as she wiped her hands on her crisp white apron. "It's curious that he remains unconscious. Perhaps-"

"Some sort of sleeping potion," Professor Dumbledore finished for her with a gentle smile. But his expression grew serious as he watched Harry's slumbering figure. Nodding slowly, he said, "We'll know more when he wakes up. Until then, we can all rest easier. Could I see you for a moment, Poppy? In your office perhaps."

Madam Pomfrey's mouth dropped open in surprise, but she recovered quickly. Without commenting, she followed the Headmaster into her office and closed the door.

Only a few minutes passed before Professor Dumbledore returned. Harry was resting comfortably, peacefully sleeping with his black hair smoothed off of his forehead to reveal his famous, jagged scar. A thick layer of healing ointment covered his cheek.

Smiling benignly at Lupin and Ginny, Professor Dumbledore said, "We can't be certain what Harry has been through until becomes conscious. He could awaken in a minute or next week. We'll have to wait and see."

Despite this indefinite declaration, the Headmaster's presence, as always, seemed to exude calm and reassurance. Mumbling unintelligibly, Ginny sat down in the nearest chair and took hold of Harry's hand.

"We'll know the whole story soon," Dumbledore said, peering at her intelligently over his half moon glasses. Despite his mild expression, something in the tone of his voice sounded ominous. "In the meantime, Mr. Potter will need absolute rest. Even when he becomes conscious, for everyone's sake, visiting hours will have to be restricted. He shouldn't have to answer questions until he is ready."

Ginny looked up. Surprised at Dumbledore's veiled warning, she wasn't sure what he meant.

Patting her shoulder, Lupin continued, "Harry's safe. You can stop worrying. I'm sure you have plenty to do. Isn't this your O.W.L. year?"

Ginny smiled at him. He was right of course, and she knew she'd better agree or risk getting a howler from her mother. "Of course, you're both right." She shrugged and said, "I do have some catching up to do."

The Headmaster walked away, leaving Professor Lupin and Ginny alone with Harry. As she watched his sleeping form, she knew her feelings of happiness and relief showed openly in her face, but she didn't care. She made herself comfortable in the bedside chair, twisting her ruby necklace around her finger, grateful that no one had suggested she leave Harry's side immediately.

In fact Professor Lupin smiled at her indulgently. "I'll find Ron and Hermione if you like. Let's see…it's Saturday afternoon and Hogsmeade is still off limits. Where do you think I could find them?"

"Try the library." Ginny laughed and added, "And…thanks, Professor. For finding him and bringing him back." Gathering her courage, she ventured a question, half expecting to be rebuffed. "Where…where was he?"

Professor Lupin turned back toward her, and said, "I guess there's no harm telling now. We found him in a Death Eater stronghold, not far from Myrddin's Den. Harry's phoenix led us to the cave the night he disappeared from Hogwarts."

Her forehead furrowing, Ginny asked, "Why couldn't Aurora just grab him?"

Shrugging, Lupin said, "I don't know…maybe some kind of ward. Certain Anti-Apparition Charms might be enough to keep Aurora away…even Harry would have trouble shrugging that sort of magic off."

Mentioning the cave drew her interest. She looked around for any sign of Rhys. Not surprisingly, he'd disappeared. "What about this place-this Myrddin's Den? Is it near Abergavenny?" Ginny asked, hoping Lupin would tell her the whole story.

Snape had muttered more than once about Abergavenny. In fact, those murmured words were the most she'd been able to get out of Snape the whole time she attended him.

Shaking his head, Professor Lupin continued. "I'm sure Harry told you. It's the cave where I was trapped last summer in Wales." Lupin pulled his cloak collar closer as if remembering the ordeal. "A group of us went the next day. Inside things had changed, there were chambers leading off the main cave. Everything was wide open and completely empty. No sign of anyone using the place. So we waited and set watchers in the area, searching for any place they might be guarding a prisoner."

Ginny was puzzled about one more thing. Why hadn't Harry's mirror worked? She glanced at the filthy pile of clothes under Harry's bed, wondering if his mirror was in a pocket. But she didn't want to interrupt Professor Lupin since he was explaining the rescue effort so obligingly.

"Yesterday, we discovered they were using a small, isolated farm nearby." Lupin lowered his voice conspiratorially. "Last night during the raid…we captured a very few of them. Most of them Apparated away before we could stop them. Until we talk to Harry, we won't know why they didn't take him to Voldemort. Surely that was their plan…in the confusion of the raid, I guess they forgot their prisoner. We found Harry alone and unconscious in a small shed. It was pure luck."

Ginny grinned. "At least Harry's luck seems to be holding."

"I've never met anyone who needed it more," Professor Snape said, stepping around the screen and nodding toward Lupin. "Even unconscious Potter demands all the attention. Am I to understand that I've lost all interest to the nursing staff? Perhaps you could simply show me which medicines I'm supposed to be taking, Miss Weasley."

With an amused nod at the Potions Master, Professor Lupin left the infirmary, presumably to find Ron and Hermione.

Fighting the urge to smile at the sight of Professor Snape, barefoot in his pyjamas and dressing gown, Ginny gathered all the professional dignity she could. She placed Harry's hand carefully back under his covers and turned to Professor Snape. He really did look terribly pale.

Hands on hips, she said, "Where are your slippers?" Clucking in a perfect imitation of Madame Pomfrey, she took his arm. "You should be in bed, or I won't be responsible for your condition."

The small smirk around his mouth, was the only acknowledgement Snape gave as he dutifully allowed her to guide him back to his own enclosure.

Ginny wondered briefly if she should tell him that she'd found Rhys poised over him with a wand. It seemed like she'd imagined it now. The fencing instructor hadn't really done anything to Snape even though he'd certainly had the opportunity.

If Rhys couldn't be trusted-if he were under the Imperius curse or something-Dumbledore would have noticed. The relief he'd shown when Harry arrived was genuine. Ginny was sure of that. Besides he was the only one, in all the time Harry had been missing, who really seemed to feel as devastated as she did.

"Mr. Potter appears to have survived," Snape said in a tone implying he would have preferred otherwise.

Deciding not to respond, Ginny busied herself with Snape's potions, pouring out the proper doses with practiced ease. After dutifully taking his medicine, Snape rested against his pillows with a book open in his lap, but he looked as though he'd be nodding off soon.

Across the room, she heard people arriving, loud, running footsteps and the breathless clamor of excited voices. Figuring it must be Ron and Hermione, Ginny looked at her patient hopefully.

At first, Professor Snape gave no indication that he'd heard anything. He continued to read.

Ginny sighed loudly.

Without looking up from the page he was reading, Snape said, "You may join your friends, Miss Weasley. I'm not in further need of assistance."

Not needing to be told twice, Ginny hurried across the room with a wide grin on her face. Hermione grabbed her in a big hug, and said, "Ooo…I knew everything would be all right."

Ron stood there like a great lump, but he seemed pleased. Clearing his throat, he asked, "When does Pomfrey think Harry'll wake up?"

"I…I'm not sure she knows. Professor Dumbledore thought he must have taken a sleeping potion." Ginny's forehead furrowed as she remembered the Headmaster's words. "I suppose…we'll just have to wait."

Hermione nodded, then prompted her. "Professor Lupin found him then?"

Ginny explained all that Lupin had told her about Myrddin's Den. She debated telling them about finding Rhys poised over Professor Snape, but now that all seemed surreal.

Out of breath, Neville arrived. "I heard Harry…" He stopped and gasped for air. "So it's true." With a relieved grin, he said, "I was hoping."

"We all were, Neville," Ron said, looking back at Harry with a grin.

Luna arrived, then Seamus and Dean, followed by others. Most merely wanted to see for themselves if the rumors were true, but the noise soon began to build, prompting Madam Pomfrey to insist everyone leave.

"Don't worry about it, Ginny," Ron said as they climbed the stairs to Gryffindor Tower. "You can go back later under Harry's cloak."

Ron gave his girlfriend a nervous glance, but Hermione didn't seem to have heard his suggestion. She continued walking, holding on to Ron's hand and looking more relaxed than Ginny had seen her in a while.

Despite Professor Dumbledore's warning to restrict visits, Ginny took Ron's suggestion. As the sun began to set, she went back to the infirmary under Harry's Invisibility Cloak. He was alone when she arrived, sleeping comfortably and looking healthy and somehow younger.

Ginny wondered what story he'd have to tell, once he woke up. Making herself comfortable in the chair next to his bed, she lifted the torn and dirty school uniform from under the bed, glad to have a moment alone to rifle through his pockets.

Not surprisingly, Harry's wand was missing and there was no sign of his torque or the sword he kept transfigured into a cloak pin. The pockets in his trousers were completely empty. Ginny couldn't find anything in his robes either, not a single scrap of parchment or candy wrapper.

It did explain a few things. No mirror meant he couldn't have contacted her. Of course, they'd disarmed him and emptied his pockets. That made sense. Anything could be a Portkey. But that didn't explain why Harry couldn't have made himself a new Portkey whenever they left him alone. He was fairly proficient at magic-even without a wand. Perhaps he'd been unconscious, or in too much pain. That would explain why he couldn't escape from them on his own.

Ginny gasped as Dobby appeared at the end of Harry's bed with a loud crack.

"Sorry…Miss Weasey," the house elf murmured, making a hasty bow. "Dobby had to see for himself. There is hope for all of us now that Harry Potter has returned to Hogwarts?"

Still holding his clothes, Ginny said, "Er…Dobby…do you think you could fix these for him. They need cleaning and mending."

Ears wiggling as he nodded his agreement cheerfully, he answered, "It would be Dobby's honor, Miss. But these don't belong to Harry Potter." The house elf looked confidently at the pile.

"What makes you so sure?" Ginny asked, smiling at the funny little elf.

Green eyes blinking with curiosity, Dobby turned the trousers over and said, "These trousers…made in Paris. Harry Potter never wears these. Dobby keeps track of all his things personally."

Looking closely at the label, Ginny read, 'Givenchy.' She laughed and said, "I…I guess he had to borrow some trousers." That might explain why his pockets were empty.

Promising faithfully to return with clean clothes, Dobby disappeared with a loud pop.

As the windows of the infirmary had gone dark, the lamps began to burn softly. Ginny indulged herself by contemplating the sleeping Harry for a few more minutes. All the time spent wondering if she'd ever see him again and now…here he was, lookingcompletely normal with his messy black hair spread out on the pillow.

As she watched, he spoke without seeming to open his eyes. His lips cracked into a small smile, and he said, "Ginny Weasley." His voice sounded croaky as though he hadn't used it in a while.

"Harry…open your eyes." She held her breath. Once she looked into his eyes, she'd really feel like he was back.

But when Harry obliged, the flash of recognition she was expecting never came. Instead she felt as if she was looking at a stranger. Sure he smiled at her, but only one corner of his mouth went up into a sort of derisive smirk. She'd never seen him smile that way before.

In the muted light, his eyes seemed glittering and dark. Gone was the vulnerable, sweet look, he often gave her. It saddened her to think of what he must have gone through, something so frightful that he'd emerged from the experience hardened and embittered.

Reaching out, she took his hand in hers and said softly, "I'm glad you're back."

"How did I get here?" Harry asked, his voice cracking with the effort. He sat up and looked around for a moment and then fumbled around until he found his glasses on the bedside table.

She dropped his hand and poured him a tumbler of water from the jug on his bedside table. "Professor Lupin found you," she said, handing him the water.

Taking the water from her, he drank it down eagerly, then set the tumbler down.

"You've been gone so long…it must have been-" She didn't have a chance to finish her thought.

Muttering something about greeting him properly, he pulled her onto the bed, crushed her against his chest, and kissed her soundly.

Ginny went into his lap easily, eager to feel Harry's arms holding her again, but once there, she had to choke back her surprise. It wasn't entirely the foreign smell of the healing ointment on his face. Harry had never kissed her like this and she wasn't sure she liked it. Even Harry's most fiery kisses started soft, like he wanted to be sure he was welcome first. This kiss was bruising, hard-lipped and demanding and he held her roughly with his fingers digging into her sides so she couldn't get away.

Her breathing sped up, but not from the kiss. She began to wonder if this was Harry at all. Something in her mind clicked and she felt a surge of adrenaline pour through her as she tried to think of something that only Harry would know.

He released her abruptly and leaned back with his hands behind his head. His lips thinned into a satisfied smile.

She resisted the urge to wipe her mouth. Instead, she moved to the chair next to his bed and pulled her mirror out of her pocket as if to check her face.

"Oh…you look…beautiful," Harry said, slightly impatient. After a moment, he added, "Let me have a look…I want to see if they healed my face properly."

Instead of handing it over immediately, Ginny continued to look at her face and asked, "Don't you have your own mirror?"

"Oh yeah…most of us blokes carry little mirrors," Harry said sarcastically. "I'm sure all of your brothers do." He gave her another crooked smile.

Her heart was pounding, as she calmly handed it over to him. Maybe that gash on Harry's face had affected his brain, made him forget things, or maybe it wasn't Harry. She had to find out. There was a way to know for sure, but she'd need Ron's help. She stood up and forced a smile when he handed the mirror back to her. "I better go tell Madam Pomfrey you're awake."

"I'll go with you," Harry said, swinging his legs out of the bed.

"Oh…no." Ginny panicked, and said, "Madam Pomfrey will have a fit."

"I don't want that old-" he began.

Not really listening, Ginny kept talking. "Then I…I need to find Ron and Hermione…they've been planning your rescue party for weeks."

She looked at the boy in the bed. He looked like Harry. Of course it must be Harry. She'd never heard of magic that could make someone look like someone else except for Polyjuice Potion, and that was only supposed to last an hour…he'd been asleep for hours, she was certain of that.

Maybe she was going mad…from all the stress of the last few weeks, Harry's disappearance, Rhys offering to help her, then Harry showing up, but seeming so…different. She tried to remain composed as she backed away, and mumbled, "Anyway…I'll see you tomorrow, Harry. Get some rest."

He seemed amused by her discomposure, but he didn't say anything.

Once outside the infirmary, she fled toward Gryffindor, her heart pounding with fear. If that wasn't Harry, who was it?

By the time she reached Gryffindor tower, she was feeling completely deranged. The Fat Lady had her friend Violet visiting. They were engrossed in a conversation and ignored Ginny when she choked out the password in a whisper, "Frog Spawn."

It was still before curfew. She knew Ron and Hermione were probably in the common room. The sooner they figured this out, the better. Something felt terribly wrong. "Frog Spawn!" she shouted.

The Fat Lady stopped her conversation and said, "Well…where are your manners, young lady."

Violet peered down at Ginny disapprovingly. "In our day, young women didn't raise their voices."

"Frog Spawn…please!" Ginny said, closing her eyes.

The portrait swung open with a disdainful harumphing noise from Violet. Crossing the crowded common room, Ginny was ready to breathe fire by the time she found Ron and Hermione, sitting at a table by the window, doing their homework. Crookshanks was curled up in Hermione's lap.

"Where's Harry's map?" she asked unceremoniously, ignoring the stares coming from Dean and Seamus.

"What's going on?" Ron demanded loudly.

"I…I can't really say," Ginny said, not sure how to explain that the boy they all saw in the infirmary, the one that looked like Harry Potter, may not be him at all. It sounded insane, even in her head. "I need his map," Ginny repeated in a soft, but resolute voice.

Slamming her book shut, Hermione stood up and said, "I'll help you find it."

The two girls took off toward the stairs to the boy's dormitory with Ron trailing behind. Without knocking, they strode inside and went over to Harry's trunk, which stood open by his bed. Ginny tore through the clothes, digging around in search of the Marauder's Map. She found several ancient looking scrolls of parchment buried deep beneath the untidy pile of jumpers and trousers, but no map.

Ron stood with his arms folded in front of him, not helping at all. After a few minutes of watching her rummage, he said, "I'm not going to help until you tell me what this is about."

Pausing as she searched Harry's desk and books, Hermione asked, "Is it something about Harry?"

"He's awake," Ginny said flatly, wondering how to tell them about her suspicions. They were starting to seem groundless, even to her. What could she say to them? Harry woke up and kissed me funny.

Both Hermione and Ron looked confused.

Ginny realized she must seem wild to them. Then something next to Hermione's hand caught Ginny's attention. Stepping to the desk, she seized the item with a gasp. "His glasses!"

"Yes, Ginny," Ron said, speaking as though he was trying to calm a kitten out of a tree. "Harry's glasses are still here. Does he need them now that he's awake?"

Opening her mouth to explain, Ginny still couldn't quite put her suspicions into words. The only word that came out was the short answer. "_No._"

"Of course not…he's been mostly wearing those Mugglelens things since last summer. So what is it then?" Ron prompted. "Something's obviously got you all worked up…please, Ginny. Have you had anything to eat today? You're acting all…weird."

"She told you…she needs the Marauder's Map." Hermione folded her arms in front of herself and tilted her head.

Flushing under Hermione's steady gaze, Ron said, "Well…excuse me for trying to look out for my little sister."

Ron and Hermione seemed to hold a silent conversation with their eyes. Then Ron sighed and said, "All right then. Here it is." He pulled the map out of his pocket, tapped it with his wand, and said, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

As the spidery veins of the map spread over the worn parchment, Ginny bit her lower lip. She pulled the paper gently away from Ron and refolded it to show the infirmary. The lines seemed to slow down as she waited. When the lines and dots formed showing that area of the castle, they showed three people. Severus Snape was by himself on the far end. The other two dots floated side by side near the entryway, labeled Albus Dumbledore and Draco Malfoy.

Hermione, sharp intake of breath was followed by a noise that could only be described as a growl.

In contrast, Ron fairly exploded. "How is that possible!" he shouted, then proceeded to let loose with a rambling rant about turning Malfoy back into a ferret.

Even though she'd had more time to think about the possibility that the Harry in the infirmary was an imposter, Ginny was dumbstruck for a moment. Then her mind leapt ahead to the next conclusion. Ron and Hermione may have momentarily lost their composure, but Ginny stayed focused on Harry…the real Harry.

Finally Hermione put a stop to Ron's raving. "Stop, Ron. It's not helping anything." She pointed to the map. "We have to figure out what to do."

"What'd'you mean?" Ron said. "We're going right down there and beat his pointy little Polyjuiced face in."

"I can't believe you," Hermione said, rolling her eyes. "When have you ever beaten anyone? Why would you start now? I bet Professor Dumbledore sees right through him, the way Ginny did."

"Am I not allowed to have a say in this?" Ron was livid. "Malfoy almost killed you with that potion, Hermione. Now it looks like he's done something to Harry. I say we go down there and hurt him while we have a chance. We'll make it look like an accident."

Her face flushing, Hermione said, "I…I mean that Professor Dumbledore probably already has this figured out. Why don't we tell him what we suspect?"

"Suspect!" Ron shouted. "That map doesn't lie…and it can't be fooled. As for leaving things to Dumbledore…Hermione, last week_ you_ were the one planning our very own secret search and rescue mission." He turned to his sister and said, "Sorry, Ginny. We didn't think you were up to going."

Hermione had the grace to look at Ginny apologetically. "We were going to tell you. Honestly. But it seemed like you were too upset." Then her lips tightened as she turned back to Ron and frowned at him.

"Now you've done it," Ron said angrily.

"_I've _done it?" Hermione ground out.

"No one can know." Ginny's voice broke through their bickering.

"Excuse me?" Ron asked, turning toward his sister.

Both Ron and Hermione were staring at her like she'd lost her mind. "I said…no one can find out that's not Harry down in the infirmary. At least, not yet." She knew her chin was quivering as she spoke, but she tried to explain anyway. "If Draco Malfoy showed up here, posing as Harry, then he must know where the real Harry is. If we break his face…or whatever it is you wanted to do, Ron…then we have no options. We might never know what happened to the real Harry."

When Ginny finished speaking, tears blurred her vision. She'd been so relieved when she'd thought it was really Harry. Now…Harry seemed even further away. Before the floodgates could open, she forced herself to stop. No wonder Ron and Hermione hadn't wanted her to go on their rescue mission. She must seem a wreck.

That thought was confirmed when Hermione stepped over and gave her a hug while Ron patted her back. Their sympathy made it impossible to hold back her emotions. She felt the tears begin to fall.

In a soft, comforting tone, Hermione said, "That's a really nice theory, Ginny, but we don't know if it's true." Hermione pulled away, her forehead knitting as she concentrated. "Malfoy could have simply heard that Harry's been missing. We certainly can't trust him to behave himself just because he's masquerading as Harry. Whatever his plan is-and we can be sure that he has a plan-he's up to no good."

Still keeping an arm over Ginny's shoulder, Ron added, "And think about it…even if Malfoy knows what happened to Harry…how can we trick him into telling us?"

Hermione spoke with certainty. "We should tell Dumbledore and then confront Malfoy."

"She's right, Ginny," Ron said, leaning down to look into his sister's eyes. "It would be perfectly horrible to put up with Malfoy pretending he's Harry." Ron moved over and sat down on Harry's neatly made up bed. Waving his hand, he asked, "Are we supposed to let him sleep in Harry's bed? Wear his clothes?" He shivered.

Remembering what made her suspicious in the first place, Ginny instinctively wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

Ron noticed. "Ew…please tell me he didn't kiss you."

Hermione put her arm around Ginny's shoulders for support.

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Ginny said, "All right…you make a good point…but I think you have it backward. We should confront Malfoy ourselves–with the help of Fred and George's Truth Taffy or something–and then tell Dumbledore." Wiping the tears off her face with the sleeve of her gray jacket, Ginny continued, "Otherwise, we'll never know what Malfoy has to say."

"Ginny's right. Dumbledore won't let us be involved…" Hermione held up her fingers, one by one, to emphasize her point. "Snape, Lupin, Dumbledore, everyone of them would tell us to stay out of it."

"If Aurora originally led them to Myrddin's cave, and they found Malfoy nearby, masquerading as Harry, there has to be more to it." Ginny said, her thoughts still focused on the real Harry. She was glad now that she'd never mentioned to Ron and Hermione that Rhys had offered to take her to the cave.

Hermione didn't answer. She seemed to be lost in her own train of thought.

After a moment, Ginny folded the map, tapped it with her wand, and whispered, "Mischief managed." She tucked the parchment into her jacket.

She began fishing through Harry's trunk for the scrolls from the Potter vault. "We'll need these…and maybe we should put all of Harry's valuables away. Move them out of Malfoy's reach."

Again, both Ron and Hermione were looking at her like she'd lost her mind.

"I'm thinking ahead," she said, hoping to get through to them. "In case this charade continues and they release Malfoy from the infirmary before we have a chance to…interview him."

Ron and Hermione stared at her blankly.

She shrugged and asked, "Do either of you have any Truth Taffy? Maybe we should send a quick owl to Fred and George." When they didn't move, Ginny put a hand on her hip and said, "Well…get on with it. We don't have time to waste."

They all sprang into action. Ron took charge of clearing everything out Harry's trunk except his clothes. Hermione went to the library to look up truth serums and spells. And Ginny owled the twins. They all wanted to be sure that, when the time came, Draco Malfoy wouldn't know what hit him.

**

* * *

**

_The snowstorm was almost blinding, but the Snitch was straight ahead, a golden twitching among the almost perfect white. The fluttering wings stayed just out of reach no matter how fast Harry flew._

_Suddenly, his broomstick disappeared. Grasping frantically at thin air, he watched the Snitch escape into the mist, expecting to fall. He thought he was alone with no hope in sight, then he heard it…the faint sound of music lilting through the air along with him. He'd heard the song before and, as before, it seemed to be holding him aloft, supporting him easily as he floated downward, ever so slowly, in a soft spiral._

Harry woke up spread-eagled in his conjured bed, feeling cross. The bed was soft enough, an exact replica of the poster bed he slept in at Hogwarts, but the cave was cold-freezing cold. He surveyed the white stone walls surrounding him and scowled. The idea of facing another day of confinement made Harry want to pull his blanket back over his head.

Closing his eyes, he tried to snuggle back into the charmed covers and thumb through his well-worn memories of happier times. Gryffindor winning the Quidditch Cup. The D.A. sticking up for each other in the Three Broomsticks. Ron and Hermione helping him learn spells during the Triwizard Tournament. Flying with Ginny at the Burrow. But it was too late to summon a happy dream.

Being alone gave Harry too much time to think. Dark thoughts emerged, uninvited, weighing him down with all the mistakes he'd made, and the people he'd lost. Niniane and Voldemort had sealed him in the cave, but Harry knew the part he'd played. He doubted Rhys even had a sick sister, but even so, Harry had to wonder why he'd felt responsible for saving her.

He'd blown his chance to determine the course of his own life, to go after the things he really wanted. Nothing would ever happen while he remained sealed in this cave…and he only had himself to blame.

As he lay with his eyes closed and these dark thoughts circling in his head, Niniane appeared. Cupping his cheek, she said, "Time to wake. The sun is already high in the sky."

Although Harry wasn't asleep, the unexpected feel of her cold hand shocked him. His eyes flew wide open, and he lashed out.

"And how would I know that! Trapped in here!" Harry knew that yelling wouldn't help, but neither had humoring her.

Drawing herself up to float above the floor a few feet away from him, she shouted, "What manner of madness has overtaken you? You…you have _forgotten_ me." She folded her arms and turned away from him.

Caution flew out of his head as he vented his frustration. "I've told you again and again!" Harry shouted, jumping from his bed and shaking his fist at her. "I'm not who you think I am! See? Green eyes…not blue."

Niniane drew nose to nose with Harry, her eyes shifting back and forth as she examined his eyes. "You're that boy…the one that stumbled through the cave…when no one else could pass." A look of shock followed a trace of comprehension across the ghost's face. "Where is Owain?" she shouted, as though Harry was hiding him.

"I have no idea!" Seizing on this one lucid moment, he tried to make her understand. "You told me yourself that he'd passed on long ago…he's probably been dead for centuries."

"I never…I didn't..." She dropped her head into her hands. "I wanted…oh…it's so confusing."

Bent on driving his point home, Harry continued to shout. "What's confusing? You captured the wrong person!"

She shook her head and closed her eyes. "But…I never intended…"

Harry knew that she was close to dissolving into tears, and, if that happened, she might not have another rational moment for quite some time. He needed to plant the idea now.

"Fine…you know what to do then." He looked straight into her eyes, and said forcefully, "You told someone how to lock me in here. Go tell someone else how to get me out."

She pulled away from him, and floated away, glaring back at Harry over her shoulder as she disappeared through the white wall.

Harry watched her go, knowing that he might have blown any hope of securing her help. It felt good to shout at her, but he should probably think of a way to make amends.

From the back, her long red hair and green silk gown, reminded him of Ginny although any resemblance stopped there. Ginny was warm and rational and full of life. Niniane was like a hollow echo of what she must have been when she was alive, left with one thought to torment herself with for eternity.

No wonder she'd fallen so easily for Voldemort's manipulations. He'd promised her the one thing she wanted.

For what seemed like the millionth time, the fear that he might never leave washed through him.

Harry couldn't bear to think about it again. The same spirit that kept him moving toward the future when he was a child locked under the stairs, came into play. Like an echo of the dream he'd woken to that morning, something lifted his spirits despite all the circumstances beyond his control. Something unexpected could happen and that something could change everything.

Deciding that he needed to focus on something else, Harry got out of bed and concentrated on his morning routine. Then, he rummaged around in his rucksack for his Charms book. It wouldn't be good to fall behind in his courses. If…no…_when_ someone opened the cave, he'd be ready to resume his life.

Inside the bag, his hand brushed against something hard and he closed his fingers around it. It was the large oval ruby from the Potter box. The one they'd tried to use for the top of the tangleberry torch.

Smiling at the memory, Harry whispered the words he'd said then. It seemed to sparkle in response as if something within caught the light. He held it uphigher and looked carefully. Twirling within the depths of the gem was a cloud of sparks. As he continued to inspect it closely, the swirling mist grew.

**

* * *

**

Sunday morning dawned, bright and clear, over the castle. A strong wind swept the grounds, clearing away every trace of yesterday's storm.

Ginny arrived in the infirmary after breakfast to find Professor Snape sitting next to Harry's bed. Hiding her surprise behind a cheerful mask, she greeted them both and pulled another chair over.

"I came by to _thank_ Mr. Potter," Snape said, looking like he'd swallowed some of the dead cockroaches he kept on his desk.

Ginny didn't think Malfoy seemed any happier. His black hair stuck out, Harry fashion, all over his head, but that was the only thing that seemed like Harry. He glowered darkly at Professor Snape. His arms were folded defensively in front of him, and he looked like something smelled bad.

Infirmary pyjamas and dressing gown notwithstanding, Snape appeared as formal and distant as ever. His back did not touch the chair. Inclining his head, he said slowly, "Despite my earlier lack of gratitude, in the end, the Portkey you provided was…most helpful."

Ginny tried to hide her shock and confusion by watching Snape's face from behind a curtain of red hair. Was this the information she'd been hoping to get from Professor Snape all of this time? _Potter…help._

"Portkey?" the boy in the bed asked…then hastily added in a confident voice. "I wasn't sure you ever got it." As though it was an afterthought, he shrugged.

A brief flicker of a question crossed Snape's face. Then he continued speaking slowly, as if he had to choose his words carefully. "Of course you want to…down play your actions. Perhaps you've realized the…recklessness of sending such a recognizable owl to someone on a covert mission…or the foolishness of sending a Portkey capable of circumventing the Hogwarts' wards by such an…insecure method."

Of course, Malfoy wasn't offended in the least. Considering it was the real Harry that had sent the Portkey to Professor Snape, the boy in the bed couldn't have cared less. If anything, his sneer seemed to become more contemptuous.

Realizing that Professor Snape would take this reaction as confirmation that Harry was arrogant, irritated Ginny, but she stayed out of the conversation. If she wanted to find out what happened to the real Harry, she couldn't let anything sidetrack her.

As if he'd bitten his tongue, Snape paused. Drawing his lips together in a determined line, he said, "I want to…acknowledge that your action–despite its rashness–did have a favorable outcome." Lifting his chin, Snape finished silkily, "The Portkey you sent in your letter probably saved my life. You have earned my gratitude."

There was no telling what the last part of that speech had cost Professor Snape in terms of his pride. Ginny wished the real Harry had been there to listen to it. He would have loved it.

"Does this mean that you'll give me better grades in Potions?" Malfoy asked, with a malicious grin that told Ginny, at least, that he found Snape's acknowledgment hilarious.

Snape apparently had no idea that the black haired, green eyed boy smirking at him from the bed wasn't Harry Potter. Clearly offended, he rose slowly to his feet. His voice full of its usual venom, he said, "When you start brewing your potions with greater attention to the necessary subtleties and details, perhaps your grades will improve."

Without a word, Malfoy nodded his head dismissively at Snape. He gave the Potions Professor a cold, hateful stare.

Swirling his dressing gown wasn't quite as dramatic as his usual cloak swirl, but Snape turned and walked slowly toward his own bed.

Ginny made no move to help him. At least he was wearing his slippers today. Turning back to the figure in the bed, she changed the subject. With what she hoped was a bright smile, Ginny asked, "You look like you feel better. Does that mean you're coming back to Gryffindor?"

It threw her off balance that he looked so much like Harry, yet carried himself so differently. With a disagreeable grin, he answered, "Pomfrey didn't like the idea." His eyes flashed angrily at the infirmary office. He lowered his voice and hissed, "She said it would be at least a week. She wants to run some tests…such incompetence. I…I feel fine. There's absolutely nothing wrong with me."

Adopting an air of concern, Ginny tried to placate him. "Honestly…she's worried about you. We're all worried." Cringing inside, she put her hand on his shoulder, and continued shyly, "The extra rest will be good for you…you've been through so much."

"Oh…well…it was fairly horrible," Malfoy put his head down modestly, then looked at her sideways, presumably to gauge her reaction.

Ginny tried to play her part. "When I think of…" She hid her face in her hands as she felt her acting skills fail.

Now she had something more to worry about. Through her fingers, she could see Malfoy staring at her with his mouth open, his forehead knitted in confusion. If Malfoy couldn't play a convincing Harry, things were going to be much more difficult. Other people were bound to see right through him.

At the very least, they'd think Harry had been the victim of a memory charm. If this deception needed to continue, maybe she'd have to start a rumor to that effect.

Ginny felt Malfoy's hand patting her head carelessly as if he'd realized he should console her.

The entrance of Madam Pomfrey spared her further charades. "What are you doing here, Miss Weasley?" she asked as she ran her wand over Malfoy.

Ginny answered lamely, "Er…I…thought a quick visit wouldn't matter." The wand motion Madam Pomfrey was using over Malfoy wasn't anything Ginny had ever seen before. It didn't seem to have any purpose. Perhaps Madam Pomfrey was aware that her patient wasn't Harry and was engaging in a charade of her own.

"The Headmaster has instructed me to limit Mr. Potter's visiting hours. It won't do for him to become overtired." The matron pulled a red potion vial from her apron pocket, and said, "Time for your strengthening potion."

Malfoy adopted a fake smile that must have been his attempt to look like Harry. Thanking Madam Pomfrey meekly, he swallowed the spoonful she offered.

Seeming pleased, she placed a blue bottle–probably a sleeping draught–on his bedside table. "I'll be back after lunch to give you a dose of this one."

Ginny said goodbye and walked with Madam Pomfrey back to her office before leaving. She wanted to make sure that Madam Pomfrey would be busy in her office so that she could sneak back in with Ron and Hermione. They were supposed to be waiting in the hall.

Instead Ginny pushed the door into Harry's fencing instructor who was lurking right outside the infirmary. Rhys greeted her with a nod, all the while searching over her shoulder into the infirmary. "Professor Dumbledore told me Harry was awake. I…I couldn't believe it. I had to see."

She let the door close, blocking his view, and confronted him.

Seeming pale and tired, Rhys dropped his eyes, and reached for the door handle, but she stepped in front of him.

"Are you ever going to tell me what you're really up to?" Ginny asked.

"I…I don't know what you mean," Rhys said, sounding nervous. "Anyway…I'm sure you shouldn't get involved."

"Involved with what? Harry's safe now. He's right behind that door. In fact, he's sound asleep." Ginny said, trying to gauge by his reaction whether or not Rhys knew that wasn't Harry. She thought she could tell with Snape and Madam Pomfrey, but Rhys' face gave nothing away.

"Well…if he's asleep. I'll check back another time." With a slight nod, he walked away.

Ginny watched him until he was out of sight. Then she looked around the corridor, and whispered, "Are you here?"

Ron and Hermione pulled the Invisibility Cloak off and stepped forward.

"What was that about?" Ron asked.

"Nothing…Rhys wanted to visit Harry…but I told him he was sleeping." Ginny took a deep breath and changed the subject. "Did the owl post arrive?" She looked at Ron expectantly.

Holding out a bright green package with the Weasley's Wizard Wheezes label, Ron grinned and said, "Came by express owl."

Ginny grinned back and grabbed the package. "I think we'll have to hurry."

Looking at the closed door of the infirmary, Hermione whispered, "What about Madam Pomfrey and Professor Snape?"

"Madam Pomfrey won't come out of her office unless she hears us, but we better check to be sure that Snape's taken his morning sleeping potion." Ginny frowned down at the box in her hand. "Do you think a strengthening potion will interfere with Fred and George's truth concoction?"

With a grim look, Hermione said, "It can't be any worse than the potion Malfoy slipped me last January." She lifted the box out of Ginny's hands and said, "Allow me." Hermione took out the pretty little bag of chocolate sweets and made the suspicious looking green box disappear.

"Ready?" asked Ron as he flung the Invisibility Cloak over the three of them. To mask the sound of their footsteps, Hermione cast a Silencing Charm on the floor. The three of them huddled close together. Although Ron's shoes still showed, the ruse worked well enough to get past Madam Pomfrey's office undetected.

When they reached Malfoy's enclosure, Ron cast a silencing charm on the screened in area as the three of them slipped inside.

As they appeared out of thin air, Malfoy gasped, "Ack…" and clutched his chest. "Give a bloke some warning," he said, seeming annoyed.

"Aren't you glad to see us?" Ginny asked, her eyes wide with surprise as she folded the Invisibility Cloak and put it in her bag.

"You're not supposed to be here…Madam Pomfrey-"

He broke off as Ginny plopped down on the bed by his feet. Giving him her best Lavender Brown pout, she said, "Since when do we pay attention to rules like that, Harry."

Hermione took the chair by his bed and smiled.

Ron stood behind her, and asked, "Don't you want some company?" He smiled, too.

Holding out the bag of chocolates, Hermione said cheerfully, "We brought you these."

At first, Malfoy seemed reluctant. Laughing, Ginny squinted at him as if confused, and asked, "They're still your favorites, aren't they? I've seen you eat a whole bag in one sitting." She reached into the bag and took a bite of the chocolate coating. Letting her eyes roll up, she said, "Mmm…these _are_ good."

That did it. Presumably concerned about blowing his cover, Malfoy took the bag back and popped a few of the confections in his mouth. "Mmm…chewy," he said, presumably having found the Truth Taffy nougat inside.

Ron began to talk about Quidditch. For a minute or two, Malfoy joined in, still helping himself to the chocolate covered sweets as they talked about the upcoming game against Hufflepuff. When Malfoy's eyes appeared to glaze over, Ron turned to Hermione and nodded.

At this signal, Hermione asked, "Who do you think deserves to win the Quidditch Cup this year?"

Without hesitation or intonation, Malfoy answered, "Slytherin."

"He's ready," Ron said.

"What happened to Harry Potter?" Ginny asked, her voice sounding deeper than normal.

"Don't start with that one," Ron complained.

A shadow flitted over Malfoy's expressionless face, "I…I'm not sure. No one knows the whole story. Some say Potter disappeared into some cave. Some say the Dark Lord killed him."

"Oh…" Ron said, shrugging. "All I meant was. We need to be careful how we phrase things."

"We've been over this, Ron." Hermione put her hand in his. "Fred and George said we'd only have a little time."

Ignoring both of them, Ginny asked, "Who helped the…the Dark Lord get to Harry? Was it you?"

"Someone from Hogwarts lured Potter into their trap. It wasn't me." Malfoy's voice was flat and trance like.

Ginny couldn't breathe…so it was true. Here was irrefutable proof that Harry had been trapped by Death Eaters. If You-Know-Who had him, then he might even be…no. She couldn't think that way. Besides Aurora still thought he was alive.

Hermione asked, "Why are you pretending to be Harry?"

"I volunteered," Malfoy answered.

"Are you taking Polyjuice Potion?" Hermione asked.

"What difference does that make?" Ron whined.

"Sh…I'm curious…answer me, Malfoy. What is making you look and sound like Harry?" Hermione looked resolute.

Unfazed, Malfoy answered all their questions in order. "I'm not taking Polyjuice. The difference is that I don't need anything like Potter's hair. An Illusion charm, cast by the Dark Lord is making me look and sound like Potter."

"We're not getting anywhere," Ginny said, frustrated. "What purpose do you have at Hogwarts?"

It must be something more important than making fools of all of them. Malfoy wouldn't risk coming back here, putting his life in danger in the process, only to have a little fun with the Gryffindors.

There was a pause; Malfoy was struggling against answering this one. "I…I am to pretend to be Harry Potter."

"Why?" All three of them asked at once.

Malfoy answered slowly. Either the serum was wearing off or he really didn't want to answer. "Then…then…when the Dark Lord comes to Hogwarts…I'll…I'll go over to his side, making everyone think that Potter has joined his ranks."

"Well…at least we can stop that from happening," Ron said.

"When?" Ginny asked, still focused on their questions. "When is…your Dark Lord coming to Hogwarts?"

"I don't know," Malfoy answered hollowly.

Shaking her head, Hermione said, "I can't believe it. How could they ever have expected to get away with that?"

Malfoy said, "The Dark Lord is more powerful than any of you realize. Without Potter, the only remaining obstacle is Dumbledore…and everyone knows he's an old fool."

"Well, there's your answer, Hermione." Ron scowled at the trance like Harry clone in front of him.

Beginning to sound a bit desperate, Ginny asked, "Do you have any clue who betrayed Harry? Was it a student?"

"It was someone at Hogwarts. I don't know who," Malfoy answered.

Both Ron and Hermione reacted to that, grumbling about who it might be, but Ginny's thoughts were already going off in another direction, looking for a way to find Harry, or at least find out what happened to him.

"I can't think what else to ask." Ron said.

Hermione shrugged and said, "I think we should go straight to the Headmaster. Do you have any other information that Professor Dumbledore might want, Malfoy?"

"Snape is a marked man," came the flat, hollow answer.

Ron looked puzzled. "Do you mean someone is trying to kill him?"

Nodding, Malfoy answered, "Yes, more than one person."

"Meaning someone at Hogwarts. Who…I mean…who would try to kill Professor Snape? And how are they planning to do it?" Hermione asked.

"Goyle left a Lethifold in the dungeon last fall. Nott put a lethal potion in his Christmas present. I turned him over for the Dark Lord to deal with personally, then…since he escaped, someone…someone else has the job. I don't know what they are planning." Malfoy's eyes glinted dangerously.

Ginny stood up and said, "I think we've heard enough. Besides, he looks like he's coming out of it. Hermione, why don't you Obliviate him. You're so good at charms."

"A filthy Mudblood, Obliviate a Malfoy…I'd like to see her try…" Zapped from two directions, Malfoy slumped back onto his pillow. A brief image of the real Draco Malfoy blurred into sight, smooth blond hair and pale face, then morphed back into the black haired illusion of Harry Potter.

Squinting at the unconsciousform, Ron shouted, "Bloody hell! Looked for a moment like the illusion failed."

Lowering their wands, both girls turned to him, looking mildly surprised.

Ron pulled his own wand, and said, "Maybe we should keep stupefying him. I hate seeing him look like Harry. It's creepy."

"I don't think we should do anything more." Hermione pocketed her wand, and said forcefully, "We need to find Dumbledore immediately. As it is, we'll probably be in trouble for meddling. It's too dangerous to Obliviate his memory. What if there are other things he could tell us?"

She knew Hermione was, as usual, the voice of reason, but secretly, Ginny agreed with Ron. Stupefying Malfoy some more seemed like a fine idea, but at least they'd already exposed his game.

"But we can't leave things like this…if nothing else, he knows we know," Ron said, seeming concerned. "And he could wake up any time."

Nodding and moving over to the bedside table, Ginny said, "We'll give him his afternoon sleep potion a little early, and then go find the Headmaster." She lifted the blue vial and measured. "On top of those stunners, this should make him sleep for a while."

"We'd better tell Professor Dumbledore everything he had to say." Hermione said, her eyes bright with excitement. "He'll probably have a few questions of his own."

Ginny used a dropper to give Malfoy the sleeping draught. She turned to Ron and Hermione, knowing what she'd have to do. "I know we should hurry…I mean…Dumbledore needs to know that Hogwarts could be attacked, but…why don't you two go by yourselves?"

"Is this about earlier?" Hermione asked, her brow knitting in confusion. "We couldn't let you know we were planning to search for Harry. It would have upset you even more."

"You've barely been eating," Ron said, shaking his head. "and…and you know you haven't been sleeping. Those Glamour Charms you use can only do so much. We were worried."

Wrapping her arms around herself, Ginny said, "I _am_ tired. But I was thinking that one of us should stay here and watch Malfoy…someone might help him escape. Remember last time?" With that, she sat down tiredly in the bedside chair. "Don't waste any more time. Go. Hurry." Leaning her head back, she closed her eyes.

Hermione's voice was full of concern. "Er…all right…I'm sure you'll feel better if you rest. Ron and I will tell Dumbledore about Malfoy…and what he said."

"Maybe it's best if you stay somewhat alert…considering what we are dealing with." Ron said. "That Illusion charm must be dark magic. I've never heard of such a thing…so keep your wand out, Ginny." For a moment he looked like he didn't want to leave her, but Hermione pulled on his arm and he walked away.

When they were out of sight, Ginny pulled a worn piece of parchment out of her pocket, tapped it with her wand, and said softly, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." She found the little dot she was looking for without much trouble. Rhys was in the fencing practice room–all by himself.

To Be Continued…

A/N: Just like everybody else, I really do appreciate reviews.I loved reading all the speculation in the reviews. All the guesses were really good, especially considering that the ending of the last chapter was purposely misleading.

**gina87:** Thanks for writing! You didn't have to wait long.  
**maclir:** Thanks!  
**MsMissProngs:** Thanks for reviewing!  
**bommor:** Thanks for saying you like the story!  
Miles: Thanks for writing! Full points for mentioning Malfoy. And obviously I agree, it would have been weird if Ginny couldn't see through the illusion.  
**murdrax:** Good suggestion. Harry…the real Harry may get the chance to expose Rhys yet. Thanks for reviewing!  
**icedragon925:** Thanks!  
**yorkvillebird:** Thanks for reviewing!  
**BonoRules:**_ Diolch y'n fawr!_ is pretty much the limit of my Welsh although I did understand what you wrote…so Diolch y'n fawr! Unfortunately for me, I currently reside a long way away from Abergavenny. You're very lucky. It's beautiful country.  
**Jastul:** Thanks for writing! Yes…I do have a lot of explaining to do. Hopefully the next couple of chapters will answer all your questions.  
**Silver Warrior:** You got it in one. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Seeker TLK:** Thanks for your review! Sorry to be confusing. Hopefully this chapter and the next will explain things.  
**mysticruby:** You saw right through that one. Sorry about the cliffhangers. Thanks for writing!  
**Anxiouslyanticipatingnext Chapter:** Thanks for your nice comments! I'll try to hurry the updates!  
**bassir:** Make all the guesses you want. And you did guess correctly! Thanks for reviewing.  
**Foxfur:** I loved the story of your muse…see you can write! If that angsty muse shows up again, try spraying water on it. It worked on the aliens in _Signs._ Or was it that baseball bat that worked? My eyes were shut. And once again, you guessed correctly about Harry. Thanks for reviewing!**  
B-A-Hplova22:** You're good…very good. I hope I answered most of those questions in this chapter. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Desert Hacker:** Thanks, I'll try!  
**Don:** It was just mean.I'm sorry.I don't know what came over me. Hopefully this chapter ended at a better spot. Thanks for writing!  
**GryffRavHuffSlythendor:** Thanks for reviewing! Sorry about the evilness. This one wasn't as bad. Right?  
**ganon:** Thanks! I'll try to write faster.  
**angiegs:** Thanks for reviewing! Sorry about the cliffie.  
**pokie4389:** You're right! Thanks for writing!  
**KandiG86:** Rhys just seemed dead. You're right, that was the plot thickening. That's sort of what I was going for. Yes and no. Thanks for your kind comments!  
**wlippinc:** Thanks for reviewing!  
**JakeTheSheepy:** Thanks for saying that! Fanfiction is loads of fun.  
**chunky:** Full points for your ferret comment!Thanks for reviewing!  
**Lady of Masbolle: **I stand by what I said about the cave being magical. Rhys through the paper shredder…it's a fine image. Thanks for writing all those lovely suggestions  
**SillyGillie:** Thanks for reviewing! You won't have to wait long for Rhys' day of reckoning. I'll try to post soon!  
**Sara:** Thanks for saying that!  
**Toras:** Good guesses. You're right about Rhys. He's going to be in trouble when the whole truth comes out. Thanks for writing!  
**-never:** Hopefully this cliffie isn't as evil as the last one. Sorry. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Bosch1990:** Thanks!  
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**eyes of sky:** Thanks for saying that! I am trying to finish the next chapters faster.  
**Ted M. Hammett:** I would love to write a story that focuses on Harry and Snape changing their perspectives on each other. I really hope JKR includes some of that in Book 6 and 7. I may have touched on some of that here, but there are so many other things happening, we'll have to see. Thanks for the suggestion!  
**amari:** Thanks, I will try!  
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**krissygurl:** Thanks! Hope this chapter cleared some things up.  
**Phoenix1687:** Good guess. Thanks for writing!  
**Kelly:** You're so lucky. Now you have an eight week old (?) …but I wager you're still a little sleep deprived. Your memory is fine. All your guesses and suggestions were very interesting. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Harry9970:** You were right about Harry! Thanks for reviewing!  
**aschowin:** No…and yes…and thanks for saying nice things!  
**JAMESYANKEE7:** Thanks for writing. I can't seem to stop the cliffhangers. The chapter endings just keep coming out that way.  
**Lourdes:** Hopefully this chapter explained a few things. Sorry to be confusing! I blame it on my slow updates. I'll try to write faster. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Lady of the Dragon:** You have good instincts. Thanks for writing!  
**totallystellar:** Good guesses. I'm starting to like Rhys, too. Thanks for the dust!  
**Harrie:** It wasn't just you. Thanks for reviewing!  
**spike blade:** Thanks, I'll try.  
**Nimbirosa:** All good guesses. Thanks for saying you like a story to throw you for a loop. Your stories are like that, too. Thanks for writing a review!

A/N: Thanks for reading! Please review!


	33. Fight and Flight

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Would anyone believe I've been locked in a cave for a while? Anyway, I am so sorry for the delay. It couldn't be helped. Thanks for taking the time to read and review! Notes to reviewers are at the end of the chapter.

Chapter 33  
Fight and Flight

Once outside the infirmary, Hermione took off running as if a dragon was chasing her. Worried and a little disconcerted, Ron trailed after her. He couldn't remember seeing her so flustered -- well, other than that time behind the Charms section in the library and that was a different kind of agitation altogether. He couldn't see why she was so upset. It's not like Malfoy had told them when Hogwarts would be under attack. It could be weeks away.

The first place they searched was the Great Hall. While quite a few students were still enjoying a late breakfast, the only people seated at the staff table were Professor Sinistra and Madam Hooch.

Ron longed to pluck one of the warm scones off of the heaping tray in front of him, but Hermione grabbed the front of his robes and said, "Not now…we have to find Dumbledore." Leaning into his ear, she whispered, "The castle could be under attack at any moment."

He knew there was no point in arguing. Casting a regretful glance back at the scones, he followed her clicking heels out of the hall and down several corridors. They were still running at a fair pace by the time the Headmaster's gargoyle was in sight.

Her curly hair more tangled than usual and her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath, Hermione said, "Sherbet lemons."

The gargoyle refused to open. She pressed her hand to her side, and grimaced. Her forehead was furrowed in pain.

"Do…do you know the new password, Ron?"

"How about Mars Bars?" he asked, looking expectantly at the statue. When it didn't work, he shrugged and added, "That's the one Ginny and I used the other day. Dumbledore must change his password all the time. Can you think of any other sweets?"

Straightening her back, Hermione dutifully began to list all the confections in Honeydukes. Ron had a horrible sense of déjà vu, of standing by Ginny while she went through the same list.

Before long, Hermione's voice was hoarse and Ron was out of ideas. In fact, his mind had wandered back to the scene in the infirmary. He cleared his throat and interrupted.

"Do you reckon Ginny'll be all right?" he asked. "Maybe we shouldn't have left her with that arrogant git."

Halting her litany of sweets for a moment, Hermione whispered, "Hogwarts' walls have ears…we shouldn't speak about any of this out here."

Ron looked around suspiciously. He had noticed several paintings eyeing them as he and Hermione ran down the passageway.

Seemingly softened by Ron's expression, she added confidently, "Ginny'll be fine. Mal…I mean _he_ won't wake up for hours. By then we'll have Dumbledore to sort out this mess."

Smiling bravely for Hermione's sake, Ron knew in his heart that his sister hadn't been fine since Harry had gone missing. Not knowing anything about Harry's fate was difficult for him, but he knew his sister was getting desperate. There was no telling how Malfoy's ruse had affected her. If they couldn't sort out what had happened, she might never be the same.

Ron couldn't stand the thought of losing her, too. No one had dared say it out loud, of course, but one fact was clear. Malfoy showing up at Hogwarts pretending to be Harry meant someone on their side was pretty sure the real Harry was gone for good. He really hoped that thought hadn't occurred to Ginny. As soon as they spoke to Dumbledore, he was planting himself right by her side. He might not be able to help Harry any more, but he wasn't going to let anything else happen to his sister.

He turned to the gargoyle and started pounding on the stone, joining Hermione in randomly naming sweets.

As Hermione stepped up and began to strike the statue with him, a deep bell rang. It sounded almost like a gong, a warning raining down on them from deep within some Hogwarts watchtower. The two of them hammered at the stone frantically and shouted, but the gargoyle didn't budge.

* * *

After Ron and Hermione left, Ginny stared at the sleeping figure in front of her. She'd seen him when he first arrived, covered in blood. Those wounds were real. If they had done all that just to make Malfoy's illusion seem genuine, what had they done to Harry? And he was out there -- she just knew it. Somewhere in the world, the real Harry was all alone and wondering what happened to all his friends. 

Dumbledore, the Order, her parents…they'd all searched for weeks without telling her anything. Even Ron and Hermione had decided to look for Harry without her. They'd closed her out entirely, expecting her to swallow her worry and be patient while they handled everything. And every time she'd brought the subject up, they'd all reacted the same way, trying to comfort and calm her instead of letting her help.

As though this was the time for calm. Without Harry life would…well…she simply refused to contemplate that thought any further. It wouldn't help her find him…and there was something, or at least someone who could help her search.

Staring at the dot floating on the parchment in the fencing practice room, Ginny tried to focus. She looked through her rucksack and found the Portkey that Harry had made for her all those months ago, the one that would bring her back to the infirmary if she was in trouble. She slipped it into her pocket, then made sure Harry's Invisibility Cloak was tucked inside her rucksack. Glancing around, she grabbed the bag of chocolates off Malfoy's bed. Then she hurried out of the room.

Unceremoniously shoving the infirmary door open, Ginny hit a solid object. She heard a voice cry, "Oomph…oww!"

She recognized that voice. "Neville?" she asked, opening the door more cautiously the second time, Ginny winced at the sight of him clasping both hands over his bloodied nose.

"Whad's da 'urry?" he asked.

"Oh…ew…I am so sorry," Ginny said, ignoring his question.

"Dats all righ', Ginny." Neville said, still pinching the bridge of his bloody nose. He pulled a big white handkerchief from his pocket.

Ginny covered his hand and said, "Please, it was my fault, I'll fix it."

She pulled her wand and uttered a quiet Healing Charm. Then she uttered a fairly effective cleaning spell.

Neville tucked his handkerchief back into his trousers.

"I came down to find Harry," Neville said, smiling and patting his pocket. "There's something I want to show him."

Despite these mysterious words, Ginny couldn't bring herself to care about whatever surprise Neville had for Harry. Her own worries were pressing in and she didn't feel like she had time to explain everything to him. She smiled, hoping she seemed natural, and said, "Actually…he's sleeping. But there's something I have to do right now. Something that really can't wait."

She tried stepping around him, but he moved in the same direction and blocked her path.

In a distant tower, a bell began to ring, slow and persistent.

"What's that?" Neville asked, looking around the empty corridor, as if he could discover the source of the noise nearby.

"I'd have to say that it's a rather large bell," Ginny answered, trying to edge around him without being too obvious about it.

"All right…I meant what could it mean?" Neville said, confusion knitting his brow.

Finally brushing past him, she mumbled, "Sorry, Neville…but I have to go."

Back over her shoulder, she shouted, "Ron and Hermione should be back any minute. Maybe they'll know."

With that, Ginny hurried toward the fencing practice room to confront Rhys. The entrance hall was crowded with students. The heavy front doors had already closed with a dramatic boom. The magical locks were still twisting and turning into place. Ernie Macmillan and the other prefects were waving their arms, shouting for the students to follow them to the common rooms.

She fought her way down the staircases against a crush of people, glad that — despite the fact that some had called out to her — none of them had tried to stop her. Fortunately, Ron and Hermione were nowhere in sight.

Ginny ran past some wide-eyed Hufflepuff first years and down the passageway to the practice room. The deep gong of the bell drove her forward, her shoes slapping against the cobblestones.

She checked the map to make sure Rhys was still alone. Years of being the youngest in the family had taught her the importance of stealth. As she reached the final turn, she swung the Invisibility Cloak over her, pulling the silvery fabric close around her face.

The door to the practice room stood open. Rhys sat on the floor, idly twirling a wand in his hand as though he hadn't noticed the warning bell.

As she drew closer to him, she realized a second wand was on the floor next to him, within easy reach. Except for spinning the small length of wood in his hand, Rhys held perfectly still. The dark circles under his eyes made him look much older and grim creases were set into his otherwise handsome face.

Part of Ginny softened at the sight. He seemed so sad, but right now, he also appeared to be her only hope of finding Harry. She didn't plan on leaving things up to the others any longer. Under cover of her cloak, she aimed her wand and said two soft spells in quick succession, "_Accio Wands!_ _Colloportus!"_

Both wands near Rhys flew into her free hand, seeming to vanish into thin air. The door slammed shut with a resounding bang.

Startled, Rhys was instantly on his feet, casting his head from side to side, presumably in search of the disappearing wands.

Without speaking, Ginny dropped them and her rucksack on the floor by her feet, then stepped out of the Invisibility Cloak.

"Oh…I should've known." Rhys folded his arms defensively.

"You and I need to talk," Ginny said, pointing her wand at him and watching him closely as he tracked her movement further into the room.

Arms still folded across his chest, Rhys stood still and stared. For a full minute neither of them spoke. The deep sound of the warning bell, muffled by the closed door, was the only noise in the room. It was Rhys who finally broke the staring contest.

"I knew Bill and Charlie at school, you know."

Without waiting for her to answer, Rhys shifted his gaze to the floor and shuffled his feet, giving the appearance that he was uncomfortable talking to her. "That was before…when things weren't so complicated."

Not really caring to know what Rhys was rambling on about, Ginny said, "I want to know what happened to Harry."

The sound of the bell persisted, unnerving her.

Rhys continued as if he hadn't heard her speak. "When I first came to Hogwarts, it was this beautiful, magical place…full of amazing things and interesting people."

The deep toll of the bell punctuated his speech.

Still out of breath, Ginny wasn't sure what he was trying to tell her. "What are you on about?"

"Don't you hear it? It's happening." He shook his head and came back to himself. Narrowing his eyes, he asked, "What have you done with my wand?"

"Don't you mean _wands_?" Ginny asked pointedly. "I noticed you brought a spare."

Sticking his hands in his pockets, Rhys said, "After yesterday, can you blame me? What are you going to accuse me of today?"

It was Ginny's turn to look discomfited. "I just came to talk. We didn't have a chance yesterday…and we left things a little…unfinished." She pulled Fred and George's bag of chocolates out of her pocket, asked, "Care for one? Please…think of it as a peace offering."

Rhys didn't look remotely tempted. He folded his arms again and eyed her suspiciously.

Something in his manner made Ginny afraid he was deciding how to overpower her. Keeping her distance, she kept a wary eye on him and tried to appear calm. She shrugged and withdrew the bag. "Maybe you're allergic."

"They say…" Rhys began, a small flicker of amusement in his eyes. "It's never a good idea to take candy from a Weasley."

Genuinely offended, Ginny asked, "Who says?"

"Everyone."

Ginny frowned. "I'm sure I don't know what you've heard, but I didn't come down here to play a prank on you."

The ringing of the bell suddenly halted, leaving an ocean of silence behind. Ginny let the bag of sweets fall to the floor. It seemed as though time had run out.

Rhys' expression grew more serious. "There's no more point in playing games. You don't have to trick me. Ask me whatever you want and I'll tell you the truth."

As he spoke, Ginny noticed the windows growing darker as if clouds had covered the sun. A storm must be blowing in.

"Fine…what happened to Harry?" Ginny held her breath, waiting for his response.

Rhys answered dully, "I lured him into an ambush. That isn't him upstairs in the infirmary. The real Harry's probably dead."

That was about what Malfoy had told her, but hearing it confirmed…and hearing Rhys confess his complicity in the scheme…made her blood pound in her veins. Her voice shaking with anger, she asked, "How…how could you do something like that?"

She realized she still had her wand trained on him. It took everything she had not to hex him.

"I…I told him about my sister Gwyn. She's been sick and he offered to help." Rhys's voice shook and his forehead furrowed. "It sounded like a wild story — some kind of enchanted water that could cure anything. I didn't believe him."

An involuntary little snort escaped from Ginny.

"But I knew someone…this man told me that if I could get Harry Potter out of the castle to meet with him, then he could get some of her medicine for me. You can't just buy it…and very few wizards know how to brew it." Rhys looked grief stricken. "Harry's offer, it seemed like my best chance, maybe my only chance…so I contacted this man and told him where to meet us."

"You must have known 'this man' was probably a Death Eater," Ginny said, disgusted. He'd sacrificed Harry for the promise of some potion?

Rhys' expression remained troubled. "I thought about it. He was a friend of my brother…but I never saw any mark. No masks, or anything. I…I put it out of my head. Snape had been making this potion for months, then he just disappeared…it wasn't a cure, but it was the only thing that stopped the cancer long enough to give her some peace." His eyes darkened. "You don't know what it's like to watch someone you love suffer. I would have done anything…anything at all…to make it stop."

Growing impatient at his attempt to rationalize, Ginny asked, "But what happened when you got there?"

"When I realized what was happening, I tried to warn Harry to get out, but it was too late." The hollow tone of voice had returned as Rhys resumed the story, but it did nothing to calm her nerves.

"Someone hit him with an Anti Disapparition Jinx and he couldn't get away. They were closing in on us from everywhere."

"And then?" Ginny asked, her voice barely audible.

With a grunt, Rhys answered, "Harry pulled me into the cave with him and hid both of us, all the while telling me to Apparate away…to save myself."

"And he succeeded. You're here." Ginny's eyes blurred with tears, but she urged him on through gritted teeth. "Tell me the rest."

His voice lowered. She struggled to hear over the sound of the rising wind rattling against the windows.

"I left, but Death Eaters were swarming the entrance to the cave looking for Harry. One of them caught me outside the cave and clothed me in one of their uniforms and forced me back inside. As we walked along, this woman turned into Voldemort. I was shocked…frightened. It seemed like it might really be him. That was magic that I've never seen before. They discovered Harry in a matter of minutes."

"What did they do to him?" Ginny asked, her voice barely audible.

"I don't know."

Ginny felt a cold wave of revulsion flood through her. She pointed her wand directly at his nose and shouted, "How could you not know!"

Wincing, Rhys turned his head away, and continued to speak in a low voice. "That woman pulled off my mask…as soon as Harry recognized me, he stunned me. That's the last time I saw him. When I woke up, everyone was gone. The cave was empty…I searched everywhere! I even checked the walls for any hidden passageways."

Ginny didn't know whether Rhys was telling the truth or not. She wracked her brain for a question that would confirm his story.

"Who is that in the infirmary?" she asked.

Rhys looked at her, his eyes heavy with self loathing. "I don't know...but I'm supposed to bring him his wand. They're blackmailing me now…I do what they want, or they tell Dumbledore that I'm the one that lured Harry away from Hogwarts."

"None of this will help me find him!" Ginny shouted.

"You _can't_ find him!" Rhys shouted back, looking dreadful. "No one can. He's gone. He was outnumbered and surrounded. He couldn't have fought them off."

Ginny's emotions were spiraling out of control. Even if Rhys was telling the truth…it was just his opinion, his version of the events before he was knocked unconscious. She'd have to go to the cave and see for herself.

"You don't know what you're talking about!" Ginny shouted, slinging Harry's cloak and her rucksack over her arm. "Harry could have fought them off. He's much stronger than they are. You just don't know him."

"No! I do know what happened!" Rhys shouted. He took a step toward her, but stopped short when she gestured with her wand. Holding his hands up as if surrendering, he spoke in a softer tone. "You're scared and tired…you want your boyfriend back, but life doesn't work like that. He's gone. He saved my sister's life and I repaid him by luring him to his death!"

A loud crash just outside the windows drew their attention. The sound of shattering glass was followed by a deafening whoosh. Soon the acrid smell of something burning seeped into the practice room. Through the window, Ginny saw flames shooting out of one of the greenhouses.

"I don't think we have much time!" Ginny shouted. "You have to take me to the cave…you said you would!"

"Time won't help us." Rhys shook his head sadly. "Nothing can help us now. Don't you see…there's no escape? We can't get out. The castle is surrounded."

"Harry is still out there somewhere, waiting for help," Ginny said, praying with all her heart that it was true. "I don't care what you say…I don't care what anyone says…if I have to go alone, I will. I'm going to keep looking for him until I find him."

In a flash, Aurora appeared in front of her, fluttering her tail in front of Ginny like a lifeline. The soft trill of phoenix song wavered through the air, filling her heart and making Ginny suddenly feel invincible. Without a backward glance, she took hold of Aurora's tail. Smiling at the phoenix, she said, "Take me to him."

Fire swirled around them, and they were gone.

* * *

Harry stared at the gem in his hand, sure that he'd never seen it sparkle that way before. Falling back onto his mattress,he looked at the cave ceiling. By some trick of the light it seemed to stretch and move further away, just for a moment, then it resumed its normal proportions. Harry rubbed the inner corners of his eyes, and then recast the charm to freshen his contact lenses. 

Rolling onto his side, he set the ruby on the bed next to him. Any trace of sparkles or light had stopped. The center of the gem was as flawless as it had always been. Carefully, he lifted the ruby again, and held it in his hand. The slow, roiling cloud appeared again, this time without him saying a word.

He stared into the heart of the stone. Within its normally clear depths, a small universe of stars seemed to swirl and dance, like a cosmic maelstrom. Harry startled, as the sparks breached the surface of the gem and crackled softly around his palm.

He sat up and held the gem out in front of him. For a moment he wondered if he was creating the effect himself, to break the monotony of the cave. Something to take his mind off the fear gnawing inside that he would die here, alone, his life unfulfilled. But, as he watched, mesmerized, the cloud arched and spread, breaking free from the egg shaped gem. Unconstrained, the fireworks spread until the surrounding white walls turned red.

He jumped to his feet and shouted, "What the…"

Suddenly a white light broke forth, as if it had a mind and purpose of its own, brightening everything. It traveled around the walls, dragging red sparkles in its wake. Harry shielded his eyes just as the fiery comet hit him full force in the chest, knocking him down spread-eagled onto the uneven floor.

It's nighttime and a castle is surrounded by armored knights. Fire streaks across the sky. Men scream: burning, twisting, falling to the ground...and the stench chokes the living–

A tall dark haired man and a bright haired woman walk side by side through a field. The sun is warm, and the sky blue, and–

A dragon, red as blood and pitiless as plague, roars its way into camp, snatching a knight from his horse. The horses bolt, trampling their riders as the dragon's claws reach out again–

Dense foliage, deep in shade, a stillness broken only by the buzz of some unknown insect…then a crash of underbrush and a chorus of wild cries–

Fire and smoke and the lines have broken, men desert their posts, falling over each other to escape. A wizard with long white hair and a beard stands, holding his twisted staff over his head. Light bursts forth as–

* * *

Ron sat down next to Hermione in the chairs that Dumbledore had conjured for them, feeling a little foolish for being caught pounding on the Headmaster's gargoyle just moments before. 

Professor Moody had made some crack about them trying to open the gargoyle the Muggle way and even Professor Lupin had smiled. The two Professors were now standing across the room leaning against the mantle, looking expectantly at the small fire crackling in the hearth. Although many portraits on Dumbledore's office walls listened attentively, other frames were strangely empty.

Professor Dumbledore calmly sat down at his desk and looked attentively at them through his little half moon glasses. "What brings two Gryffindors to my office in such a fashion?"

Looking relieved, Hermione said, "It's just that we've come across some information. Hogwarts could be under attack at any time."

"Where've you been?" Moody asked, pointing his walking stick at them. "Hogwarts _is_ under attack…and you two prefects ought to be in Gryffindor Tower by now. Didn't you hear the warning bell?"

"Is that what that was?" Ron asked, earning him an exasperated look from Hermione.

Lifting his hand as a signal for attention, Dumbledore said, "There is more you wish to tell me, isn't that right, Miss Granger?"

Turning her attention to Dumbledore, Hermione spoke all in one breath. "It's not just the attack on Hogwarts, Professor. You should know…the boy in the infirmary, it's Draco Malfoy not Harry Potter."

A look of surprise crossed Dumbledore's face, but he seemed ready to believe her. Out of the corner of his eye, Ron thought Lupin seemed to wither at the news. The old werewolf bent down and then turned toward Moody, putting his hand on the shorter wizard's shoulder.

His voice sounding gruff, Moody shouted, "I told you his magical aura was off, Dumbledore!"

The light in the room darkened as though a shadow had fallen on the castle, blocking the midday sun. Without taking any notice, Dumbledore shook his head slowly. Despite the continued tolling of the warning bell, he looked for all the world like a man with plenty of time on his hands.

"That explains his phoenix' lack of interest in his return," Dumbledore said, glancing sadly at Aurora, who was still perched next to Fawkes on the stand in his office. "Alas, we mustn't worry about that now…we will have to deal with events as they transpire."

The warning bell stopped. Although Ron heard Hermione gasp softly, the Headmaster continued as if it wasn't cause for concern. "Mr. Malfoy is already sequestered in the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey has been instructed to keep him sedated. We must focus on whatever is threatening to attack Hogwarts. The castle will defend itself, if we can protect it from within."

"That's just it, Professor!" Ron exclaimed, finding the silence more alarming than the bell. "What about the people…the people who aren't…"

"Please, speak freely," Dumbledore said, leaning back in his desk chair and steepling his fingers.

Ron glanced at Hermione, and jerked his head towards Dumbledore. She pressed her lips together, and nodded.

Ron took a deep breath and began. "We all figured out it was Malfoy…and, after all, Harry's one of my best friends and…"

"So we dosed Malfoy with chocolate covered Truth Taffy!" Hermione blurted out.

Dumbledore's eyebrows shot upward in surprise.

Hermione looked around at all the adults, and swallowed nervously.

Ron tried to grin, then dropped his head in his hands at the sight of all their stony faces. Avoiding their eyes, he tried to explain. "And Malfoys's been planted here because Voldemort's going to attack Hogwarts! He's going to use Harry no…you know…_Malfoy _to make everyone think Harry's gone over to the other side."

Hermione interrupted, "And he couldn't do such a thing without some help from someone inside the castle."

"We left Ginny to watch him…" Ron added. "So no one could help him escape this time."

Ron was suddenly glad that Ginny had offered. It certainly made it sound more like they'd handled things properly and cautiously.

"What's that about your sister, Ron?" asked Mr. Weasley as he stepped through the floo. The hearth continued to flare with green light as his brother Bill, Tonks, Hestia Jones and Kingsley Shacklebolt followed his father through the floo network.

Ron smiled. It made him feel safer, stronger somehow that his father had arrived. Here was someone who'd always believed in him.

Just then a flash of fire called everyone's attention to Fawkes' perch. Dumbledore's phoenix held still under everyone's sudden scrutiny.

Hermione spoke first, her voice almost a whisper. "Harry's phoenix has disappeared."

Everyone turned to the Headmaster, clearly expecting him to explain. They all knew he'd been saying that as long as Harry's phoenix was hanging around, it had to be a sign that Harry was alive somewhere.

"It could mean nothing of course," Dumbledore said. The only sign that he was thrown for a moment was a slight tightening of his jaw. Conjuring a reassuring smile, he said, "We must continue to face each dilemma as it occurs. Dark forces are closing in on Hogwarts. We will need to keep our wits about us."

Some of the Order members nodded their assent as the adults gathered around Dumbledore's desk to look at the miniature model of Hogwarts that he'd conjured there.

But Hermione buried her face in Ron's shoulder for a moment. They didn't speak, for neither of them wanted to affirm what they were both thinking.

* * *

Aurora and Ginny arrived in the clearing outside of the cave. Letting go of the phoenix' tail, Ginny stumbled as she landed in the soft grass. Smiling gratefully up at Aurora, she whispered her thanks and rolled to her feet. She looked carefully around the glade while she dusted the grass off her knees. 

It was a beautiful spring day. No sign of turmoil, no warning bell. Bushes, dense with bright, green buds hugged the hillside. The canopy of trees surrounding the small clearing were speckled with blossoms in shades of pale pink and white contrasting starkly against the dark evergreens of the forest. Knowing the cave entrance was somewhere behind the screen of shrubbery on the hillside, Ginny took a few tentative steps towards it.

Something stirred within the thicket, shaking the branches and making the ferns tremble.

Ginny paused at the sight and fought off her fear. Swinging the Invisibility Cloak over her head, she felt safer as she disappeared under its soft folds. Then, bolstered by the soft trilling of Aurora perched somewhere high overhead among the blooming trees, she moved slowly toward the bushes.

Hugging the cloak close and fingering the Portkey in her pocket, she moved forward cautiously, trying not to make an obvious depression in the untrampled grass. She wrenched herself backwards, as two small birds burst forward, scattering leaves as they chased each other from the bush. Ginny smiled at the sight of the birds skittering in front of her. Sweeping back a branch, she stepped behind it toward the hillside.

A few steps more and she saw an ancient statue cut into the side of the hill with a basin beneath. This was the place. Aurora circled high overhead, either unwilling or unable to approach the entrance to the cave. Though the phoenix was now silent, her presence gave Ginny the reassurance she needed to step inside the small opening in the side of the hill.

After the warmth of the spring sunshine, the cave seemed especially cold and dark. Ginny stepped inside cautiously. It worried her a little that there didn't seem to be any defenses for the cave, no guards, nothing blocking the entrance but some old bushes…no reason to guard the cave. Then she remembered Aurora. Harry's phoenix thought he was here.

When she stepped into the main cavern, the torches were already lit. Everything was just the way Harry had described it, except that the arch on the far side of the room stood open. If she could make it inside that room, she could find the passageway to the rest of the chambers, or maybe find clues about where Harry might be.

A few steps forward and the room seemed to sway. As the wave of dizziness washed through her, Ginny couldn't remember where she was or why. Panicking as she looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings, she closed her eyes.

When she opened them again, the cave seemed very familiar. Still standing near the entrance looking inside the main cavern, she had an overwhelming sense that the cave was empty. In fact, she could vividly remember having just finished searching both the room in front of her with its gently flickering torchlight and the room beyond that archway. She could remember touching the cold stones and checking for hidden passageways. The only other rooms she'd found were the one that Professor Lupin had been in last summer and the one beyond the archway -- all empty and untouched.

Something wasn't right. She knew there was more to this underground grotto than those two caverns. What about the staircase and the storerooms that Harry had explored? Stepping forward unsteadily, she looked around with her heart pounding, this time keeping her eyes closed, she took a few more steps and the confusion left her. By the time she'd reached halfway through the room, her mind had cleared.

Shaking her head, relief flooded through her. Someone had warded the cave with a Confundus Charm. That's why Lupin and the others hadn't found anything. None of them had really searched and…they wouldn't have warded the cave if _there were nothing here to find_.

Hope returned with that thought, but her relief was short lived as the next step she took filled her with blinding pain. It started with her foot and spread through her entire body until she was shaking with it. Ginny collapsed to the ground, writhing.

The rucksack she was carrying broke her fall, but she rolled over in agony. The pain did not subside, but she felt something rigid poking into her. It was her wand. She pulled it out of her pocket. With all the strength of will she could muster, she aimed it at her feet and whispered, _"Finite Incantatum!"_

It was enough to end the pain, but now Ginny had to fight her fear. Sweating profusely, her heart pounding, she took off her shoe and rubbed her foot. After a moment, she put it back on and stood up unsteadily, unsure about taking another step.

But now she had something other than her own desperate faith to drive her forward. Clearly someone was determined to keep people out of this cave and to punish anyone who disobeyed. That could only mean one thing. Harry _was_ here somewhere and all she had to do was figure out how to find him.

Ginny took her Charms book out of her bag and dropped it onto a small rock near her feet. Before she could quite bring her hand back, knives shot out of thin air and shredded the book to pieces in a few furious seconds, nicking Ginny's palm in the process.

It was just a scrape, but it stung. Pressing her free hand against the cut, Ginny looked around her. Dozens of innocent looking rocks, exactly like the one she'd stepped on and the one that carved up her book, were scattered all over the cave. Perhaps every one of them had some sort of cruel and deadly jinx applied. Moving carefully, she set to work clearing a path across the floor so she could reach the archway. A combination of levitating the rocks out of her way and throwing down her Potions book before she took her next step, made her progress slow, but pain free.

Somewhere between writhing in pain and concentrating on clearing the floor, the Invisibility Cloak had slipped off and it now hung loosely over her shoulders. Ginny felt unbearably warm anyway, so she slipped the cloak and her jumper off and put them both in her bag. She undid the top buttons of her white uniform shirt and kept working with her book to clear a path.

By the time she had reached the arch, she could barely breathe. Worried that the heat was caused by another ward, Ginny tried the revealing spell that Harry had taught her, but it only showed that the cave was full of magic. Blue light shone everywhere, indicating that the very air was enchanted. Extending her wand at nothing in particular, she shouted, _"Finite Incantatum!"_

Laughter rang out around her. A high, cold, mirthless laugh that she hadn't heard in years. Someone had appeared in the archway behind her. She turned, surprised at the sight of a handsome, sixteen year old boy, impeccably dressed in a Slytherin Hogwarts uniform. Although Ginny knew he was only a charmed image — she could see through him into the inner room — her pulse began to race.

"You must have some sort of death wish," he said, a humorless smile curving the corner of his mouth. "But now you must turn back or your wish will become a certainty." With that pronouncement the image of the clean cut teenager morphed into the sinister vision of Lord Voldemort as he looked today, white faced and snakelike.

When Voldemort had placed the Boggart Ward or whatever it was, he probably expected the second vision to be the frightening one, but she knew all too well what the young Tom Riddle had been capable of and the latest incarnation had nothing on his younger self.

Ginny swallowed hard and looked away. It didn't seem smart to try to march through the archway, even considering that the image was definitely just some sort of ward. She raised her wand, and cast a Protection Charm around herself. Moving off to the right side of the doorway, she reached out with her Potions book to test the ward. As carefully as she could, given the angle, she pitched her book like a Quaffle, directly at the sinister face.

A ball of fire as large as a blast from a dragon flared in the archway, disintegrating the book. The wave of heat was so intense that Ginny could feel it even through her shield. The flames disappeared moments later, and the image of Voldemort reappeared, smiling at her as though daring her to walk through the archway anyway.

Clearly no one could survive walking through a blaze like that. She'd have to find a way to clear the ward. Ginny didn't know what to do. She wished she'd paid more attention to what Harry had said about the wards at Hogwarts. There had to be some spell that would let her pass.

It was so hot. Her hands were clammy and her hair clung to her face and neck, but she lifted her wand and aimed at the figure in the archway. If this was the only way through, she didn't see much choice. She'd have to try the only spell she knew. While her aim was careful, her hands were so sweaty that her wand slipped and fell just as she said, _"Finite Incantatum!"_

As her wand slipped, she reflexively ducked, grasping for it. The ward sent a powerful explosion back in her direction, and the bad angle of her casting sent the warded blast upward toward the ceiling, off toward the right side of the archway, above where Ginny was crouching.

The initial backfire from the ward missed her entirely, although she couldn't escape from the shower of small rocks and debris falling from the ceiling above her head. It was all she could do to cover her head with her arms until the dust settled. She grimaced with pain, but she didn't think anything was broken.

Choking on the dust, Ginny looked up to see that the blast had created a hole next to the archway, a new and unwarded entrance to the inner chamber. If she could climb through that new hole, she wouldn't have to pass through whatever other nightmares the ward on the archway had planned.

Ginny strapped her rucksack on her back and held her wand in her teeth so she could use both arms to climb the wall and reach the new opening. She grabbed onto the nearest handhold, leveraging herself up the stone. Gravel trickled down over her, sliding down her neck. Dust clung to her face, congealing into paste. She continued climbing, inching her way up the wall until she'd reached the hole.

Clambering through eagerly, she was confronted by something she should have expected. The specter of a lady with long, red hair and a low cut green dress, sat on thin air, a few feet off the floor. Her face was buried in her hands, and she appeared to be quietly crying.

Ginny called out to her, "Niniane!"

Obviously startled, the ghost lifted her face and turned. She was beautiful, seeming neither old nor young. She lifted her chin and asked, "Who's there?"

Then, instead of waiting for an answer, she floated to her feet and turned toward the wall, apparently ready to retreat.

Gathering her courage, Ginny crossed the inner chamber and shouted, "Wait! I need your help!"

The ethereal figure just walked through the wall as though she didn't hear. Ginny stopped, looking around at the smooth, clear walls. The room held a raised platform, but nothing else. There were no other passageways visible, but she knew somewhere off of this room a staircase led to the storerooms that Harry had explored. She frowned. Maybe…maybe the doorways here were like the barrier at Platform Nine and 3/4!

Ginny nodded to herself, and followed Niniane through the wall. On the other side, she exhaled in relief. In front of her was a spiral staircase, cut into the side of the cave, leading up toward some sort of light. The walls had fingers of light stone that thickened and grew together as she climbed.

Racing to keep up with the now wailing ghost, Ginny tried to catch her breath and at the same time get the ghost's attention.

"Where…are we…going?" Ginny asked, between gulps of air. She reached the top of the stairs completely out of breath, astonished to find that the stairs led to a blank white wall.

Niniane turned swiftly and loomed over Ginny's head. She snarled in Ginny's face.

"We?" she shouted. "Get out! You've no business here!"

Drawing herself up as tall as she could, Ginny matched Niniane's angry glare. "I'm not leaving until I find Harry."

The ghost let out a cry that would haunt the dead. Ginny winced at the racket, but stood her ground. She knew she should be sympathetic in the face of all that grief, but all she could think of was the time when Harry had to deal with this same angsty ghost, and Seamus and Parvati thought it was Ginny wailing like that.

She couldn't help herself. She laughed and once she started, she couldn't stop. And, before she knew it, she was laughing and crying at the same time.

Miraculously it worked. Apparently Ginny's hysterics were enough to bring Niniane out of her melancholy. The next thing Ginny knew, the beautiful ghost wrapped her arm around her shoulder and patted her sympathetically, muttering soothing noises.

The shock of Niniane's cold hand brought Ginny back to her surroundings. She tried to grab that hand and hold it, but — like all ghosts — there was nothing there.

"You've lost someone?" Niniane asked, in a mournful tone.

"This is the last place anyone saw him — " a sob caught in her throat, cutting her sentence short. Ginny swallowed hard.

"You're so young," Niniane said sadly, shaking her head. Muttering something like, "And you'll never get out of here alive," the ghost drew away from Ginny.

"Have you seen him?" Ginny asked, desperation drove her forward, keeping her talking to the crazy ghost. "I need to know what happened to him…to find him."

"Find him…yes…" the ghost began to float down the stairs.

"Wait!" Ginny shouted after her. She didn't have anything to lose. "I can't keep up with you."

She raced after the ghost, back down the steps in a vain attempt to keep up. She watched the green skirt fade through the wall about half way down the stairwell, and stopped, pressing her hand against the wall.

Discouraged, Ginny sat down on the step. She pulled a tissue out of her pack and wet it with water from her wand. Between wiping the grime off her face and casting a quick cleaning charm she began to feel marginally better.

It would have to do until she made it back to Hogwarts, if she made it back…if there was still a Hogwarts to go back to. Remembering the smell of smoke and the flames leaping from the greenhouse, Ginny spared a thought for what might be happening back at school.

It wouldn't matter. None of it would if she couldn't find Harry. The fact that the crazy ghost had tried to lead her away from the top of the stairs was not lost on her. She decided to climb back up and examine that white wall.

* * *

On the other side of the white wall, Harry was still flat on his back, engulfed in a glowing field of swirling red and gold lights. He slowly fought his way to consciousness. 

As the lights finally faded, he opened his eyes. Despite the fist sized rocks poking into his shoulder blades, he felt better than he had in weeks. He looked down at the now clear ruby in his hand and smiled. The visions had shown him more than brief flashes of the distant past; he now knew how to get out of the cave.

Leaping to his feet, Harry resisted the urge to do a little dance. Instead, he resolved not to waste any time. He'd lost enough of it trapped in here.

Harry grabbed his rucksack and began to transfigure things back into their original form. Remembering something he'd seen in his vision, he added as many of the fist-sized crystals from the cave that he could find. Finally, he shrunk everything down and slipped it into the pocket of his robes.

With a determined sigh, he walked deliberately toward the sealed exit. Fighting the tremor in his hand, he held the ruby to the white expanse of stone and said, "_I mewn chrau ydy chryfder!"_

Nothing happened.

His heart sinking to the pit of his stomach, Harry repeated the incantation.

"It won't work from inside."

The melodious voice startled him and made him heartsick at the same time. Of course, it was obvious that something was wrong.

Harry turned to look at Niniane, his eyes blazing.

"I was only trying to help," she said, sounding miffed.

"Help!" Harry shouted, wondering what she could mean. "What help have you ever --"

She cut him off. "And how have you repaid me?" The ghost's anger was escalating, as if she was bothered by something else. She snarled accusingly, "There's someone here…someone to see you."

"Who is it?" He wasn't sure this was good news.

"That's what I want to know?" Niniane shrieked. "Who is she?"

Niniane's jealousy aside, Harry was worried. This could mean that Voldemort and his Death Eaters had returned to finish him off. "Does she have black hair?" he asked, worried it was Bellatrix Lestrange.

Niniane frowned at him, and said, "Her hair is red like mine and she's looking for you. Have you played her false as well as me? Are there yet others? Some with black hair perhaps?"

Feeling like the sun had broken free somewhere inside him, Harry took a step toward the ghost.

"Ginny!" he shouted, his breath rushing out.

Niniane folded her arms over her chest defensively, a shocked look on her face. "Men!" she said, as if frustrated with the whole gender.

But Harry didn't back off. "It has to be her," he said. Moving close to the ghost, he said gently, "You've nothing to be jealous about. Remember, green eyes, not blue. I'm not who you thought I was. Owain was faithful to you…I'm sure of it…but I'm…I'm Harry…and the girl out there…well…she must have been very brave to come all this way, just to see if she can get me out of here."

Studying his face for a moment, Niniane softened her stance. She nodded and said, "Owain was faithful to me."

Harry pressed his advantage. "I'm sure he was. And I'm faithful to Ginny. It's just…couldn't you show her how to open the cave?" he asked.

"She needs some of your blood to open the cave. Perhaps a love potion," Niniane said, with a brief smile. "Or does she have something of yours? Some token. Something you've charmed."

Harry smiled back. Ginny would need something that used his blood, was charmed and was a token from him and he knew of something she'd have that was all three.

* * *

"Bloody hell!" Ginny shouted, glaring at the stone wall. She'd tried everything, every spell she'd read, or that Harry had taught her, and nothing was working! The wall remained impenetrable. She sat down on the step again, and bowed her head. 

"Your Harry's in here."

Ginny jerked her face upwards, and she flinched at the sight of Niniane's head stuck out of the rock above her. The ghost arched an eyebrow knowingly at her, then promptly disappeared.

Scrambling to her feet, she tried to follow Niniane through the wall, but the stone remained solid. Her heart pounding, she slapped the wall in frustration. At last, a wisp of reliable information about Harry, then the stupid ghost disappears again. Was she just teasing? Ginny didn't know whether to be relieved or frightened. Her thoughts and emotions were frayed. If Harry was really in the next cave, was he alone? And how could she get inside to find out?

Rubbing her nose, she wondered if the ghost would remember she was out here.

But it was only a moment of wondering before Niniane was back at her side. The ghost floated by her shoulder, strands of her hair passing through Ginny's body. Ginny shivered, and moved away.

"You'll have to disenchant this wall," Niniane said.

Shaking her head, Ginny said, "I don't know how…"

"Use the same incantation as the one to seal the cave. _I mewn chrau ydy chryfder!" _Niniane spoke the Welsh phrase as if it were obvious. " And you'll need some blood."

Ginny stared at her. Thanks to the debris falling and the curse that had cut up her book, she had no shortage of blood to choose from.

She pressed her cut hand against the white stone, and stepped back. Pointing her wand at the bloody handprint, she haltingly repeated the words.

Nothing happened. Panic began to rise within her, worry that she had misspoken the incantation. She'd come so far.

Niniane looked at her like she was a silly little girl, "Not your blood…Harry's blood."

Her heart plummeted. Letting her wand fall to the ground, Ginny shook her head sadly. "I don't have any of Harry's blood."

And just how was she supposed to get any of it with Harry trapped inside?

The ghost tilted her head to one side and said, "He said he gave it to you. Some sort of token."

Niniane gave Ginny a closer look, running her gaze over her clothes and rucksack. Confused, Ginny looked down at herself. She snatched her wand off the ground and tried to focus. Something Harry had given her? What…oh! She pulled the charm with the small rubies out from under her collar. "Do you mean this? Harry gave me this…it's charmed to protect me."

"What better protection than a blood charm?" Niniane said with a wistful smile.

Could it be so simple at the last? Pulling the chain off of her neck, Ginny held the charm against the cold white stone and tried again. This time the wall glowed blood red as she shouted the incantation. Mist began to gather on its surface. A cloudy vapor rapidly evaporated off the stone. And as the mist cleared, she saw inside the cave.

Harry stood alone in the center of a spectacular white cavern, looking thinner, but very much like himself; staring back at her, wide eyed.

She took a step towards him, but halted at the threshold when he shouted, "Wait!"

Harry rushed forward, still looking at her like she was another ghost. Ginny had a sudden, wild thought about the state of her hair and the gravel and dust covering her. Then Harry began to smile, the corners of his mouth curling, and a weight seemed to lift from her chest.

As he finished crossing the distance between them, their eyes still locked on each other, she was lost in the familiar green sparkle. Then she found herself pressed against his chest and felt him breathing in her hair.

In a rush of words, he spoke about all that had happened. She heard his voice, but she wasn't listening to what he was saying. It was too much to take in. There'd be time to sort out his story later. For now, she heard only the wonder and the longing underneath his words, and the sound of his heart beating below her ear. The tumble of sounds washed over her like the evening tide over sand, smoothing and refreshing everything in its path.

Harry stepped back for a moment, keeping his hands on her shoulders, drinking in the sight of her. She ran a trembling hand through her hair. Overwhelmed by the intensity in his eyes, she couldn't meet his gaze.

The corner of her eye caught Niniane watching them from a distance, smiling as though their happiness was her own. Perhaps she saw herself as she should have been all those years ago, reunited with Owain. As she watched, the silvery apparition evaporated into the white wall like moonlight fading with the morning.

Then she forgot all about the ghost as she felt Harry wrap his arms around her againand pull her close. Leaning in slowly, he brushed his lips against hers, softly, tentatively, as if he was asking permission. But, this time, there was no holding back.

She melted against him, opening to his touch. Like a floodgate had opened, all they felt, weeks of wanting and fearing they'd lost each other, they poured into that kiss.

For Harry, it seemed like time had begun again. When he'd first seen her appearing in the mist, he thought she might be another illusion. A ghost sent by Death Eaters to torture him. Then he realized that even if she was an illusion, he didn't care…he'd been so thirsty for the sight of another person, and the girl standing in the doorway was at the top of his wish list.

She'd been looking straight at him, holding him with her eyes like she'd cast some sort of spell. Even from across the room, he could feel it flowing through him.

As he'd closed the distance between them, something inside him was whispering that he shouldn't trust his eyes. It could be another Death Eater trick, but the warning voice was drowned out in the rush of seeing her standing in front of him. All rational thought fled in the tumble of emotions coursing through him. Holding her close, he knew this was real…her scent…the feel of her hands in his hair…and before he could stop himself, he was blurting out all that had happened, crushing her close to him with the silky feel of her hair against his cheek, all the while wondering what miracle had brought her to him.

Harry shifted his hold, keeping his hands on her shoulders, leaning back so that he could get a closer look. He realized she was shaking and before he could stop himself, he leaned down and kissed her. He felt her respond, opening to him as his lips moved over hers. This was no pale imitation; this was the real girl.

At length, lack of air forced them apart, slightly breathless. Keeping her in the circle of his arms, Harry said, "I've missed you so much."

"Me, too," Ginny said, glancing nervously around the white cave.

Feeling her tremble against him, Harry stammered, "But, how…what…how?"

Before she could answer, he found her lips again and for a while, the cave around them ceased to exist. As the kiss deepened, Harry realized that nothing mattered more than the girl in his arms…or the people in his life. He never wanted to be separated from them again. The thought that followed this was that they were surely still in danger. Until they escaped the cave and returned to Hogwarts, he should be paying more attention to his surroundings.

With a sigh, he pulled away and asked, "How did you get in here?"

"It wasn't easy," Ginny answered with a grin. "This place is…dangerous. Let's get out of here."

"You don't know the half of it," Harry said, smiling back at her. He took a moment to shrink her rucksack to fit in her pocket. Clasping her hand, he asked, "Ready?"

Entwining her fingers with his, Ginny said, "It's not going to be easy to get out."

"How many guards are there?" Harry asked.

"There didn't seem to be any. But the place has wards and jinxes everywhere…it was really luck that led me through to you." She shook her head, and smiled. "And of course that crazy ghost."

"Just luck?" Harry smirked. "Hardly. More like sheer Weasley stubbornness!" He squeezed her hand and said, "Thanks for not giving up."

Ginny smiled, and kept her hand in his as he took the first step down the stairs, away from his prison.

Suddenly he felt dizzy…the whole cave seemed to sway. For a split second he thought he wasn't feeling well. Then he heard a rumble from deep within the cave. Small rocks and debris began to fall around them and he realized it must be some sort of earthquake.

"It's another ward!" Ginny shouted over the clatter and commotion, throwing her arms around his waist.

Nodding calmly, all things considered, Harry pointed at the cave behind them. Keeping his aim trained on the white walls, he shouted the time freezing spell. A blast of bright white light began to circle the crystal walls in the cave behind them, growing as it traveled. Closing his eyes against the blinding light, Harry covered Ginny's eyes with his hand and shielded her with his body as he quickly muttered, "_Protego!"_ The time spell passed by them on the stairs and continued through the crumbling cave, seeming to freeze everything in its path.

Gravel and debris hung in midair. As quickly as they could, Harry and Ginny retraced her steps through the cave, coming finally to the clearing outside. When they left the cave, Harry's spell faded and the hillside began to collapse, shaking the ground underneath their feet. A cloud of dust and ash shot out of the bushes behind them as the interior of the cave disintegrated.

As the ground trembled around them, a fluttering of white descended from high above the clearing. Like the first flurry of snow, the white petals of the budding trees showered down on them, catching in their hair and dusting their shoulders. Just as softly, the sound of Aurora floated down from the branches above, growing louder and sweeter as the phoenix drew near. Harry grabbed her tail and with a strong arm around Ginny's waist, he whispered, "Hold on."**To Be Continued…**

**Thanks!**

**Nimbirosa:** Thanks for reviewing! Aurora didn't come near Draco since he was faking Harry. That was the reason that Dumbledore and Moody wanted him sedated until they figured out what was happening.  
**Lady of Masbolle:** Work piling up all around…that's pretty much what happens to me, too. Thanks for reading and reviewing!  
**Lourdes:** I'm so sorry this took so long to finish. Anyway, I hope this chapter cleared up some of the lingering questions. At least Ginny was smart enough to sneak up on Rhys. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Lady of the Dragon:** You had Rhys all figured out--his sister's story and all! You're right about the torch, too. Thanks for the nice long review!  
**Voice of Moonlight:** Thanks for your kind comments. It's all right to be picky. Thanks for writing!  
**Toras:** Hope you liked Ginny taking matters into her own hands. You were right about Dumbledore. He always knows more than he lets on. Thanks for writing!  
**sarah: Thanks, I will try!  
SeekerTLK:** Thanks for reviewing! I couldn't take him being trapped any longer either. Of course, Malfoy is still sleeping it off in the infirmary so we'll have to think of something more for him.  
**Hary9970:** Dumbledore was acting weird, but he had a different reason. Thanks for writing!  
**B-A-Hplova22:** Thanks for saying that. I felt sorry for Ginny, too. As for Niniane, she's insane so it's hard to credit her with rational thought. Of course, Harry had to escape! I'm sorry about the time between updates. It is hard to keep track of things. Thanks for reviewing!  
**spike blade:** Thanks, I'll try!  
**Jake The Sheepy:** Now it's Neville left guarding Malfoy…Thanks for reviewing!eyes of sky: Thanks for writing! He is a dirty little…  
**mysticruby:** I'm glad that was a surprise. You were right about Rhys. If he really wanted to hurt Snape, he had his chance. Ron and Hermione have a greater role in the next chapter. Can't leave them out. Thanks for reviewing!  
**MsMissProngs:** I'm glad you saw through him. Thanks for your review!  
**krissygurl: Smart! Thanks for writing!aschowin: Ron might still have his chance. Thanks for reviewing!  
Ted M. Hammett:** Thanks for your review! Snape's smart enough to at least know something was off. Thanks for all your nice comments. Sorry to take so long with the update.  
**Jack-A-Roe: **That was nice of you to read the story through. I really appreciate it. I think if I were to rewrite parts of the story, I would at least shrink the Neville thing down because it leads the reader too far away from the main storyline. Does that make sense? The teachers were at least on to the fact that something was amiss. They just didn't have a chance to sort it out before Harry's friends took matters into their own hands. Anyway, thanks for reading it through and reviewing!**  
Harrie:** Thanks! Sorry to keep you hanging on the cliff for so long.  
**fantastical-doodley-pips:** Bono does rule! I don't know why you've changed your name. It's the first time I've ever been rooting for someone to win a Nobel Prize. Thanks for reviewing!  
**snuffles007:** Thanks for your review! The updates are coming…eventually. Sorry to be slow.  
**Cobalt 45:** Thanks for all your comments about Ginny. I agree; she seems like a character that could really step up and take charge, as she did in this chapter. Thanks for reading and reviewing!  
**tatie:** Thanks for saying that you're hooked! Sorry to write so slow.  
**rosepetal 13:** Thanks for writing! I think Voldemort is insane enough to torture and maim his own followers when it suits him. Look what he did to Pettigrew in GOF!  
**SillyGillie:** Thanks for saying that! Dumbledore may have stopped them if he'd known what they were planning to do. Now they have the information they need and Malfoy has been stunned. I'll try to post soon.  
**mikeyJsly:** Thanks for all your kind words! I am sorry to have written this chapter so slowly. Thanks for the encouragement.  
**GryffRavHuffSlythendor:** I thought the Parisian trousers might be a dead give away. Malfoy would be the sort to wear designer clothes. Thanks for reviewing!  
**Lioness Blackfire:** You should be pleased with yourself. I'm glad you liked Snape's thank you. Thanks for your review!  
**Silver Warrior:** You figured out the attack was imminent! I'm very impressed. Part of the plan included Draco being incapacitated enough to keep him out of the path of all but Harry's close friends. Obviously, Draco overstepped his brief when he tried to take advantage of the situation. Thanks for reading and reviewing!  
**Danny:** I'm so sorry to keep you in suspense. I hope you got your science project done anyway. You asked a very interesting question. I do think that Harry's power comes from both of his parents. The books mention his mother's abilities and sacrifice far more often than his father's. The reason I keep mentioning the Potter line is that all of the torch information has been handed down in the Potter family until someone could use it properly. It's not canon. I totally made that part up. Thanks for your review!  
**KandiG:** Thanks for writing! I'm glad that Draco was a surprise. "Harry's" rescue was a little too easy. As you read in this chapter, Voldemort had him solidly warded inside that cave.  
**Nathalie-z:** Thanks, I'll try!  
**Bahzad:** Thanks for reviewing!  
**SuzanneN:** Thanks for saying that about the last two chapters. I'm glad you saw through the fake Harry.  
**lucy-lollipop:** Thanks, I'm trying!  
**Crash3350:** I remember your story. Thanks for reviewing!  
**travis:** Thank for writing! Sorry it wasn't soon!  
**MandaEvelyn:** Thanks for all your kind comments. I'm trying!  
**r h 4 ever:** I'm sorry about the cliff hanger. Really I am. It could always be worse. I could have stopped when Ginny met up with Tom Riddle's image or when the cave exploded over her head. Thanks for writing!  
**ulkser:** I am so sorry to be slow! Thank you for being curious. I promise to finish writing the story. The delay really couldn't be helped. Draco and Harry are on a collision course now. Thanks for writing to me!  
**iamari:** Thanks!  
**Saffron Halifax:** Thanks for all you wrote! I will try to get the next chapter out faster.  
**paddyandprongs:** Thanks for your review! Hope Harry's rescue was fast enough. Dumbledore has his hands full now.  
**Treck:** I can't believe you read thirty two chapters in a single sitting either! That's impressive. Thanks for taking the time. I appreciate it and thanks for reviewing.stevo: Thanks for reviewing! Rhys has been bad, hasn't he? I'm sorry about the withdrawal. At least this chapter is long.  
**Fang:** Thanks for saying that! I'm trying to finish the story before summer. Guess I better hurry! Thanks for your review!  
**Always Wright:** Sorry to worry you. I won't abandon the story. I have plans to finish. Thanks for reviewing!  
**blumnkymn:** I'm sorry to worry you. I hope you have been reading loads of other fics. Thanks for writing!  
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**duestchwolfsorceress:** Thanks for reviewing! My thanks to both you and your sister! I have four sisters so I know how rare agreements can be. Thanks for the nice things you wrote. As for a schedule, I'm so optimistic that I always plan to update within a week or ten days, then real life intervenes. Sorry. I thought about making Rhys' brother an identical twin. In the end it seemed like that would make things too complicated, but it was a fun thought.  
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Thanks for reading! Please review!


	34. The Dragons Siege

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Time to finish this story before HBP makes it alternate universe.

In the interest of posting this chapter today, I decided not to write individual responses. I do want to thank everyone that reviewed. Reading them makes it all fun.

**Chapter 34  
The Dragons Siege**

On the cliffs overlooking the water, Hogwarts stood massive and gleaming in the late afternoon sun. From Dumbledore's window, Ron could see the water dashing itself against the rocks. It should have been all sparkling waves and shining white foam, but the deep blue green of the water had darkened to dull grey as the skies over Hogwarts filled with menace.

Ron angled his head against the glass for a better view of the grey haze building over the castle. Squinting into a dense cloud, he spied movement. Shrouded in soot and smoke, shadowed forms came towards the school low and fast -- too low and fast. Through the rapidly growing fog, they grew ever more distinct, writhing and clawing the air as they flew.

"Dragons," Ron whispered, putting his hand against the pane.

The swarm of beasts circled above the castle, roaring and snarling. A lone dragon broke free from the formation and raced towards the Quidditch stands. The massive black-scaled creature made quick work of the mostly wooden structures, lashing his heavy spiked tail against one spectator box after another, thrashing fiercely as if the stands had initiated some sort of an attack. His great maw, ringed with gleaming fangs, widenedas he spewed white hot blasts of fire, igniting the rubble. Then with a graceful twist, the dragon took to the air again, flying back to the swarm and disappearing into the company of other dragons.

Stomach clenching and heart pounding, Ron saw a second wave of dragons appear and then a third, Chinese Fireballs and Irish Greens. For what seemed like ages, he watched, his frustration growing as they circled over the castle, roaring and rending the sky with their claws as they massed above. An occasional renegade swooped down from the throng and rained fire on rooftops and outbuildings. The sound of the onslaught reverberated through the castle, although the stone structure held firm.

At last he turned from the window, putting his back to the attackers, hands clenched at his sides. Standing and watching was too hard, he wished he could be out there doing something.

Neither Hermione nor Professor Dumbledore seemed the least bit concerned about the Quidditch stands, although Ron was pretty sure they'd seen it when it happened.

Dumbledore had been busy, sending Moody and the other members of the Order out to guard the various common rooms and to shore up the castle wards. Now he had settled behind his desk, writing furiously on a length of parchment. Light from the window fell across his white hair and beard, casting the old wizard with a radiance that seemed infused with power.

The portraits in the room were silent, but Ron noted that none of them were feigning sleep. He left the window and joined Hermione who'd been sitting by the Headmaster's desk since they'd arrived earlier that afternoon. She nodded absently and patted his fist. He wanted to take her hand in his, but didn't quite dare while Dumbledore was in the room.

Since the others had left, Hermione hadn't taken her eyes off the model of the castle and grounds stretched across Dumbledore's desk as if by sheer strength of will she could somehow keep Hogwarts safe. She probably couldn't tell any better than Ron how the model worked, although the tiny mound of rubble where the Quidditch stands had been was something of a clue.

Professor Dumbledore set down his quill and removed his half moon glasses. Closing his eyes, he slowly rubbed between his brows with his thumb as if clearing his thoughts. Then he put his glasses back on and beckoned to Fawkes.

Unable to hold it in any more, Ron blurted out, "I suppose that's the end of Quidditch this year."

Hermione shot him a disgusted look that clearly told him she didn't think he should be thinking about Quidditch at a time like this.

He stared back defiantly. He didn't care. Sometimes Hermione could lose sight of the important things in life.

She shook her head at him and almost smiled. Speaking softly so Professor Dumbledore wouldn't hear, she said, "I think Hogwarts has a lot more to worry about than losing the Quidditch stands. You can play _after_ we survive this attack."

Professor Dumbledore fastened the parchment he'd been writing on to Fawkes and said something to the phoenix in a low, soft voice that Ron couldn't quite understand. When Fawkes disappeared, Dumbledore turned back to Ron, a trace of amusement flashing across his face.

"There's still a chance that the Quidditch season will continue, Mr. Weasley. The castle cannot be harmed by these creatures in any significant way…although they are most likely only the beginning."

"Then, er -- You Know Who must really be behind this…I mean, Malfoy told us he was planning to attack," Ron said hesitantly, a little embarrassed not to be bold enough to say Voldemort. Harry and Hermione always did.

Shrugging her shoulders, Hermione asked, "But Voldemort must know the dragons can't break through the wards, so why even use them?"

"Can you think of no other purpose?" Dumbledore answered, keeping a thoughtful eye on Ron.

"Well, he can't be after Harry. His disappearance has been widely discussed in the Daily Prophet." Hermione said, as if musing to herself. "He must be after you, sir."

The wizarding newspaper had reported Harry's mysterious disappearance a few days after he'd gone missing. Since then, they'd printed several articles claiming to have solved the mystery. One said he'd been spotted in Ibiza with a Muggle supermodel. Another story, quoting a reliable Hogwarts source, said Harry wasn't missing. He'd just been permanently changed into a newt in a Transfiguration accident.

Pushing those thoughts aside, Ron likened the situation to a chess game where Dumbledore and You Know Who were the kings. The dragons and whatever other creatures preparing to join the fight were simply being shuffled around the board in a show of strength, positioning for attack -- perhaps to force Dumbledore to spread his defenses too thin. The real fight was between the Headmaster and You Know Who. Before he could put any of his thoughts into words, Hermione, as always, had an answer for the Headmaster's question.

"It's like with the chamber…he wants to do something so horrible -- something so frightening, that the parents will insist their children go home." She paused, looking to both of them in turn. "He wants to close the school. Or force the Ministry to replace you as Headmaster with…someone else…is that it, Professor?"

Just then, Fawkes reappeared. Shoulders slumping for a moment, the Headmaster removed the undelivered parchment from his leg and patted his head before he flew back to his perch.

Several portraits gasped softly, as if they understood the significance of the unopened letter. Phineas Nigellus began to grumble, but Dumbledore silenced him with a look.

"We mustn't let it come to that, Miss Granger," Professor Dumbledore said, sounding grave as he vanished the parchment in his hands. "Even the best laid plans cannot account for every possibility. We can only do our best to defend the castle and hope that if our efforts are not equal to the task – by chance something unexpected may yet transpire to save the day."

* * *

In a flash of light, Aurora dropped Harry and Ginny onto a mound of tall grass. Too close to maintain their footing, they toppled to the ground, legs hooking over ankles and elbows poking where they shouldn't. Oblivious, Aurora sang her way toward her nest high in a nearby tree. 

Untangling herself, Ginny sat up a few inches from where Harry lay sprawled in the grass. She winced as she felt the back of her head where she'd crashed into the ground, but a low laugh escaped as she noticed their surroundings. They were in the same place Aurora always took Harry when she thought he was in danger.

Harry blinked up at the clear blue sky. His side ached where an unlucky roll had rammed him against Ginny's elbow, but otherwise, he felt all right. The air around him smelled like the forest, fresh with grass and pine. He rubbed his side and looked up at Ginny.

"I don't want to move," he said, his words almost a groan.

Ginny didn't answer. Instead, she stood up and adjusted her clothing. Rather like she was in a hurry.

Giving in, Harrycame to his feetnext to her and waved his arm at the woods excitedly. "You'd never guess it, but this is Hart Fell! And that's not all. It was a – a vision or something – I found out loads of other things in that cave. Things I've wondered about – "

Her silence drew his attention and he looked at her closely, trying to take it all in at once. Somehow during the struggle through the cave, her white shirt and dark skirt had torn. Dirt and grass stained her knees. Sweat and grime streaked her face. Her hair was wildly tangled.

She looked lovely, but she didn't seem relaxed. Her eyes were shut tight and she was biting her lip as if holding something back. This wasn't the reaction he'd expected. He thought she'd be as excited as he was about the visions in the cave, but he could see she was still overwhelmed by their narrow escape, or maybe she reckoned he'd gone a little mad from being locked up for so long. Maybe he had.

Stepping closer, Harry lifted a lock of Ginny's hair, carefully wrapping it around one of his fingers.

"When did you become so fearless?" he asked, his voice sounding rough as he pulled her to him.

Despite her sudden bashfulness, she came into his arms easily enough. Into her hair, he said, "I don't know how you managed it, but thanks for being so brave."

Ginny pushed him away and stared at him with wide, frightened eyes. "We don't have time for this, Harry."

"Wha – "

Forging ahead, Ginny said, "Hogwarts was being attacked when I left. A bell was sounding an alarm that I've never heard before and – and something crashed into the greenhouse and set it on fire."

Holding her at arms' length, Harry began to question her. "What set the greenhouse on fire? Was anyone hurt? Who was it?"

Ginny shook her head vehemently. "I just don't know," she said. "I…I left with Aurora. It didn't seem like there was any time to lose. I had to find you."

"But that must have been hours ago," Harry said, closing his eyes.

In his mind he saw it as he had in the cave.

_A castle surrounded. Fire streaking across the sky...and the stench chokes the living—_

"I know," Ginny said, grimacing.

Harry pulled her to him again.

For a brief moment, they stood there quietly, Harry still rubbing circles absent mindedly on her back while his heart pounded and his mind raced around the problem confronting them.

Finally he let out a breath and said, "Well – we can't just pop back to the castle. Anything could be happening. And we won't be much use if the castle has been overrun."

She raised her eyes to his. "But we can't just stay here either."

Harry nodded. Taking her hand, he pulled her with him, moving purposefully toward Aurora's tree.

Ginny tugged back on his hand to get his attention. "There's more, Harry. Draco Malfoy showed up yesterday, disguised as you. He said it was part of a plan to attack Hogwarts. So you see – "

That clinched it for Harry. Grasping Ginny tightly around her waist, Harry signaled Aurora. As the phoenix flew towards them, he said, "I do see…you can explain on the way. I think I have an idea."

Forehead knitted together, Harry grabbed Aurora's tail and said something to the bird. After his muttered words, Aurora dutifully took off, and they were soon flying over the tops of trees. Keeping a firm grip on Ginny's waist, he wondered if he was doing the right thing going after the tanglewood tree. It could turn out to be a myth. His vision in the cave could turn out to be a mad hallucination. He might be grasping at an illusion, but he had to risk it. If the torch story was true and he succeeded, then Hogwarts, his home, and all the people in it, would be completely safe at last.

Keeping these thoughts to himself, he listened instead while Ginny told the story of all that had happened at Hogwarts while Harry'd been gone. She told him about Draco Malfoy and his plans to publicly defect disguised as Harry. She told him about Rhys and her suspicions about the Welshman.

Listening to her story, he felt proud. He couldn't think what he'd ever done to deserve her. She was so strong and so loyal. He held her close while Aurora continued to fly them effortlessly over the trees.

* * *

The turmoil continued to press down on the outside of the castle, but inside, the room was silent except for the occasional report from the various portraits keeping an eye on different parts of the school. Professor Dumbledore kept a sharp watch on the model of Hogwarts on his desk, probably turning over all the possible configurations for the oncoming attack, figuring how best to defend the castle. That's what Ron would do if he had more information. As it was, he sat there, feeling useless. 

In the chair next to him, Hermione cleared her throat nervously. She was turning the silver ring on her right hand with her thumb and chewing on her lower lip, both signs that she was working up the nerve to say something.

Before she managed it, however, a familiar voice called from the hearth, "Albus? Are you there?"

All heads turned to see Professor Snape's face hovering in the fireplace across the room.

Dumbledore smiled at him and said, "Ah…you're awake. I do hope you're feeling better, Severus."

With thinly veiled annoyance, Snape said, "I'm not calling to discuss my recovery, Headmaster. It appears that something is amiss here in the infirmary." He arched an eyebrow as if he couldn't help reproaching even the Headmaster. "I woke to the sound of those fire breathing monsters outside my window, and Potter, making an unearthly noise -- groaning and thrashing about -- it didn't appear that Madam Pomfrey would be attending him anytime soon. In fact, she seemed to have disappeared. So I went to attend the boy myself."

"And what did you find?" Albus asked, his voice pressing for a speedy answer.

"Neville Longbottom – ranting impossibly and completely entangled in his bedclothes. He'd just come around, you see. It appears he'd been stunned after something of a struggle, but there's no sign of his attacker." Snape shot Ron and Hermione a look of disgust, as though Neville's misfortune was typical of all Gryffindors.

Dumbledore's only response was a sage nod of his head.

Foreheads crinkling in unison, Ron and Hermione looked at each other in shocked silence. While Ron considered the possibilities, he felt Hermione work her small fingers into his.

"Ask him where Ginny is!" Ron shouted across the room, rising from his seat without letting go of Hermione's hand. He crossed the room, dragging her along behind him, and knelt before the fire. "Where's my sister?"

Tightening her grip on Ron's hand, Hermione said, "Ron, this really isn't helping."

"Despite my great concern for your sister," Snape began, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "I am not her keeper. Five points from Gryffindor for interrupting my conversation with the Headmaster and for your complete lack of respect. I haven't seen Miss Weasley, but Mr. Longbottom was lucid enough to explain that it was Mr. Potter who took his wand and then stupefied him with it. Naturally he has no clue about Potter's whereabouts, although the action speaks for itself. Clearly the boy thinks it's time for another one of his heroic rescues."

Snape sniffed derisively, as if the very thought of Harry coming to the rescue was ludicrous.

Through gritted teeth, Ron began, "All right…"

"Professor Snape," Hermione cut him off before he could finish. "It was Draco Malfoy in that bed. He must have been the one who stupefied Neville. Some sort of charm made him look and sound like Harry, but it's not -- he's not. It's an illusion. The _real_ Harry is still missing."

Hermione dropped her eyes as she mentioned Harry being missing. Ron wondered if she wasn't silently acknowledging that the real Harry was probably dead.

Ron imagined that a shadow of understanding flitted across Snape's face. His lips drew into a thinner line, but he didn't make any comments.

Hermione recovered and continued her explanation, her voice becoming increasingly urgent, as she tried to make Snape understand. "We left Ginny there to guard Malfoy. Please, sir. Is there any sign that she's been there? What about her rucksack?"

Not so subtly, Snape looked at Dumbledore for approval before answering. "I'll take a look around."

In a low voice, Ron said, "She wasn't very happy about Malfoy. You don't suppose…"

Hermione pulled him up so they were both standing in front of the hearth. Leaning her head back to look at him in the eye, she said quietly, "I didn't think about it at the time, but…she did keep the map…and his cloak."

A soft chuckle behind them made Dumbledore's presence known. Ron looked up to see the Headmaster's amused expression. "What are you suggesting?" he asked.

"Is it possible to leave the school right now?" Ron asked, inadvertently looking out the darkened window. "Aren't the gates blocked?"

"Not at the moment, Mr. Weasley. Hogwarts is locked down, that's true. There is no way to leave the castle, but it's possible to leave the grounds if your sister found a way out of the castle before the wards were triggered. The gates are warded to keep our enemies out, not to lock us in," Dumbledore said, following his gaze and nodding. "But I imagine that it's only a matter of time before we are surrounded by even more sinister company."

Considering what Dumbledore meant, Ron's stomach plummeted. Was he talking about Death Eaters or You Know Who himself?

Hermione nodded and asked, "Wouldn't leaving be difficult with the dragons flying in circles over the castle?"

"There is no way for us to know how they are being controlled." Dumbledore paused as if lost in thought before continuing. "Their behavior today is quite unnatural – and therefore decidedly unpredictable."

"They can't land on the castle. Isn't that right, Professor?" Hermione asked politely. She was thinking of last Halloween when the dragons had first come to Hogwarts. They'd tried and failed to land on the battlements.

As though explaining the situation would put it straight in his own mind, Dumbledore said, "The dragons have been sent to weaken our defenses, and by whatever dark means, they are being controlled by someone. It's likely that a second and third wave of such creatures…perhaps trolls or even giants…will be unleashed before the real attack begins. They will press against the wards until they find a weakness, or create an opening. Once they do…"

He looked sharply through his half moon glasses and added, "Under ordinary circumstances, even Hagrid would have a difficult time controlling these creatures. They have a wild and dangerous nature. I fear some force has agitated them, perhaps placed in their mind the thought that the castle harbors some sort of prey or enemy."

Dumbledore paused again. It was odd seeing him so preoccupied. It made Ron uneasy.

"What can we do?" Hermione asked breathlessly.

Ron heard Hermione breathe a sigh of relief as Dumbledore appeared to return to his normal self and answered with a bright smile, "I assure you, the matter is under control. That's where the Order members have gone. They are repairing and strengthening the wards."

Hermione smiled in return. "Couldn't we help?"

Shaking his head, "It's not Hogwarts policy to put students into dangerous situations. You and Mr. Weasley have already helped by bringing Mr. Malfoy's deception to light. It is unfortunate that you cannot return to your common room, but the castle defenses have been activated and until the wards release the staircases…even if you were to somehow reach the tower, the Fat Lady would not be able to open the door. There is no way for you to return to Gryffindor. You'll have to wait out the attack here."

With the energy of a man much younger than his years, he moved to a cabinet near his desk. He returned with a golden object, about the size of an orange. Ron figured it must be some kind of instrument to measure things. What it was meant to measure was anyone's guess. Dumbledore set it down on a small table and tapped it with his wand. It began to spin and sizzle, rising up a few inches at seemingly random intervals.

Ron kept his eyes on the mysterious contraption although he had no idea what it could tell them. He startled slightly as Snape came through the hearth and joined them.

Despite Hogwarts' desperate circumstances, and the urgent need to locate Ginny, Snape had taken the time to change out of his hospital dressing gown. Every one of the myriad of buttons on his formal black robes was neatly fastened and not a greasy hair was out of place.

Ron couldn't help but roll his eyes.

"Miss Weasley's things are nowhere to be found," Snape said, slightly out of breath. "But Poppy is attending to Mr. Longbottom. She'll send word if there's any change."

"It seems that Miss Weasley is not in the castle," Dumbledore said, without looking up. He gave his whirly gig contraption another poke. "However Mr. Malfoy appears to be attempting to enter the Slytherin common room."

At this announcement, a buzz of questions and wild speculations whirled through Ron's head – starting with the suspicion that Malfoy had done something to his sister. A sound filtered through to him and he turned to look at Hermione who was mouthing something.

"Ron…are you all right? Don't worry. We'll find her…"

"How do we know what that bloody minded git's done to her?" Ron asked quietly, recovering enough to give Dumbledore a worried glance.

In his usual impatient tone, Snape demanded, "If you have some information about your sister's whereabouts, then I suggest you share it, Mr. Weasley."

"Tell him about Malfoy, Ron." Hermione eyebrows knit together. "Maybe he'll help us…we have nothing to lose."

"Now is not the time for subterfuge." Snape's voice dropped an octave with a silky warning note. "She is most likely in grave danger."

Thinking Hermione must have gone mad, Ron stumbled over his next words. "It…uh…may not…er…"

He was saved from utter incoherence by the sound of a commanding voice calling from the hearth.

"You might want to come up here, Dumbledore." Moody's gravelly voice came from somewhere unseen. "I think we need your help. The wards are draining faster than we can restore them and we're about to get more company. The castle gates are surrounded."

All heads turned to the window. Ron moved back to his original vantage point. The lake was churning with white caps as though some hidden struggle down below had agitated the water. Small birds skittered low across the hillside in large numbers, escaping from some unseen enemy. Ron could only think of Dumbledore's prediction that other dangerous creatures would soon join the attack. Something was working its way through the forest.

After a quick glance over of the model on his desk, Dumbledore sprang to the hearth. For a moment he stood, floo powder in hand, and said, "Perhaps you could see about locating Mr. Malfoy, Severus. It won't do for him to wander the corridors impersonating Mr. Potter. I'll be back as soon as possible." Then he disappeared in a flash of green fire.

"Oughtn't we to come with you, Professor Snape?" Hermione asked, in that bossy tone of voice that Ron usually hated. "I mean Malfoy is -- "

"With the wards in place, Mr. Malfoy won't be able to so much as open the front door," Snape said, his expression stony. "And you look positively green, Weasley. Perhaps you should sit down."

"That's just it." Hermione stared determinedly back at him. "We heard Malfoy admit that he plans to turn himself over to Voldemort, disguised as Harry to make it seem to everyone that Harry has switched sides. And Moody just said the wards might fail."

Snape's only reaction was a slight tightening of the jaw, but Ron reckoned he might have only imagined that.

"I don't suppose I can convince either of you to wait patiently while your elders sort this out," Snape said, voice dripping with disdain. "Perhaps you think the Headmaster needs more to worry about…or you're trying to fill the void created by Potter's absence by making yourselves as much of a nuisance as possible?

Ignoring the screech of a dragon flying very close to the Headmaster's window, Snape silenced the golden whirly thing on Dumbledore's desk with a quick tap and moved toward the hearth. Without further comment, the Potions Master disappeared into the floo system.

"Come on, Hermione," Ron said quietly, grabbing her hand and leading her toward the hearth. "We have to get to Malfoy before he does. He must know what happened to Ginny."

"Maybe…just let's stay together."

"Do you reckon we've waited long enough to follow Snape?" Ron asked.

Hermione nodded. Grabbing a handful of floo powder, she stepped into the hearth. Ron stepped in with her and wrapped his arms tightly around her small form. Dropping the powder, Hermione repeated Snape's words. With a green flash, the room was empty.

* * *

A quick whirl through the Hogwarts floo system and Hermione and Ron were scrambling out of the fireplace in the Potions Master's office, relieved to find the room already vacant. They could hear shouting through the open door of the classroom. 

Ron held a finger to his lips, waiting until Hermione had nodded before lowering his hand. Together, they crept toward the door.

Before they'd reached the threshold, Sophie Moon's voice reached their ears. She sounded groggy, as if someone had just woken her up. "I…um…we…were…er…late getting back to the common room and – "

Another voice — Blaise, this time -- interrupted her. "We didn't want to be locked up in the common room," he said. "Not if we could help somehow. So…we hid in here. Then we heard someone -- turned out to be Harry, actually, and…we figured he'd know something."

Ron peered through the crack in the door, Hermione listening over his shoulder. In the Potions classroom, he could see Sophie holding her head, sitting with her back against the wall, and her legs stretched out. Blaise knelt by her side, one hand on her arm. Professor Snape loomed above them like a predator, his hands at his hips, and long robes arrayed behind him.

"But he stunned her!" Blaise said, sounding like he still couldn't believe it. "Before we had a chance to say anything…and…and then he ran."

Leaning down, Professor Snape said something too softly for Ron to hear. Then he straightened up and gestured to Sophie. "You can use the floo in my office. Madam Pomfrey should be there."

Then, his robes billowing, he strode out of the classroom.

"I will, Professor," Blaise called after him, as he helped Sophie to her feet.

Hermione gasped as Ron broke past the doorway, rushing to follow Professor Snape.

"What in Merlin's --" Blaise clutched Sophie's arm, gaping as Ron thundered past them both.

"Blaise. Sophie," Hermione nodded as she chased after Ron.

"It wasn't Harry!" she called over her shoulder.

"What?" Sophie yelled at Hermione's retreating back. "But we saw him…"

"Malfoy!" Hermione shouted back. "It was Malfoy in disguise!"

Hair flying, Hermione raced down the corridor, taking the corner just in time to see the sole of Ron's trainer turning right.

"Boys," she muttered, taking a gulp of air before setting off again.

She increased her pace, clattering down a short flight of stairs, and finally caught up with Ron.

"This way," she said, tugging on his arm.

She pulled him into the alcove behind the statue of Ceneu the Red Neck, the seer who'd worn a snake wrapped around his neck for a year.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"I know a shortcut…" Hermione said without slowing down. "We have to get to Malfoy before he does, or we'll never get to question him."

"A shortcut to where exactly?" Ron asked. "And how do you know about it?"

"You'd be amazed what you can find in a library," Hermione said, her eyes sparkling as she glanced over her shoulder at him. "And we're going to the entrance hall. Malfoy must be trying to get the door open so he can go rejoin the Death Eaters…that was his plan, yeah?"

Hermione skidded to a halt, forcing Ron to stumble into her back. She panted, completely out of breath as she quietly uttered the password. _"Prefectura!"_

The back end of the alcove rumbled, detached, and then slid to the side. Hermione grabbed Ron's arm again, and led him into the secret passageway.

The space behind the wall was dark, and cold. It smelled faintly of candle wax. As they stepped further inside, candles ensconced on the walls lit, setting fire to strings of cobwebs linking each wall sconce. Ron ducked his head, but no ash reached the ground. It disappeared as it fell.

"And I thought you only read wholesome things," he muttered. "Regular snoop, you are."

"This way," Hermione hissed.

She led him to dual staircases, sharing one base, and then splitting in opposite directions. Candles flared at the first touch of their feet on the steps. Hermione gripped his hand, and they began to run, dust swirling around them. She pulled him towards the left hand staircase, and up through another tunnel dotted with candles that lit and died as they ran past.

"Not much farther," Hermione said, panting. Her hair clung to her forehead.

Ron was too winded to do more than nod. The candle above his head sputtered, and went out, and then he and Hermione were at a stone wall.

"_Prefectura_!" Hermione repeated, and the wall moved aside.

They stepped out onto the landing of the marble staircase above the entrance hall. The sound of furious shouting rose from below. Flattening herself against the wall and yanking Ron to her side, Hermione conjured a tapestry to hide behind.

Ron strained to hear, but the sound was too muffled by the tapestry. He batted it aside — ignoring Hermione's hiss — and stuck his head out. He could recognize Harry's voice, sounding desperate as he shouted all sorts of spells._ "Alohomora! Bombarda! Patefacio!"_

Ron wavered. Could this be Harry? It sounded so much like him. He stepped out from the tapestry, and walked to the edge of the landing. He glanced around, and then ducked down behind the stone banister for cover.

"Well?" Hermione asked.

Ron looked behind him. Hermione had her head poking out from the tapestry, its fringed edge clenched in her hand.

"Hold on," he whispered, and looked down below.

Harry had his wand clutched in one hand, and with the other, was pounding on the heavy wood of the main door to Hogwarts. Then he began to jerk at the thick iron ring that served as a door pull.

Ron bit his lip. If he didn't know Malfoy was running around impersonating Harry, he'd be convinced. It certainly looked like Harry, but then why would he be trying to get out of Hogwarts when…but there was something familiar about the wand in his hand.

Looking closer, he realized something. That wasn't Harry's wand -- that was Neville's! And for someone who'd been missing for weeks, he'd certainly managed to take great care with his clothes, a feat Harry wasn't able to do even with help from the house elves. He'd even knotted his tie properly!

"Well, Ron? Well?"

He jumped at the voice suddenly so close to his ear. Hermione steadied him. She'd come out from the tapestry, and was now kneeling next to him, peering carefully at the scene below.

"It's Malfoy," he said, pulling her down so they were better hidden. "Stake my life on it. He _is _trying to open the main door!"

"But what about -- "

"_Expelliarmus_!" cried a familiar voice, and Ron and Hermione rushed to look.

Snape stood across the way from Malfoy, wand at the ready. As they watched, Neville's wand flew away from Malfoy and landed near the entrance to the Great Hall.

Malfoy glared darkly at the Potions Master. "Give me back my wand! Summon it here at once!"

Snape stalked forward until his shadow fell across Malfoy's form. Ron shuddered at the snarl disfiguring Har —Malfoy's face. It was disconcerting to see and hear Harry, knowing that Malfoy's twisted brain lurked behind his friend's captured face.

"You might as well give up this charade, Draco," Snape said. "Did you really think you could pass yourself off as Harry Potter, and no one would notice?"

"Worked on you, didn't it, Professor?" Malfoy sneered. "Or was that apology actually intended for me?"

"You insolent little -- "

Malfoy kicked out, striking Snape in the arm, and crushing his wand hand back to his chest. Snape twisted to the side, tumbling Malfoy to the floor, but losing his wand in the process. It dropped to the floor, skittering across the stones and under a statue next to the heavy main doors. As he lunged for it, Malfoy kicked again, striking at Snape's ankles and rolling to his feet.

Charging ahead, hands in fists, he collided with Snape and they fell to the ground, locked in struggle. From above, Ron and Hermione couldn't tell who was winning. Snape had experience and strength on his side, but Malfoy had youth and a willingness to fight dirty.

Taking the fight as their cue, Ron and Hermione leaned over the banister, wands ready. Both of them tried to stun Malfoy, but neither could get a clear shot.

A stream of red light flashed across the entrance hall. Narrowly missing Snape and Malfoy, the shot shattered a wall sconce near the Great Hall instead.

Harry's fencing instructor, Rhys something or other, had arrived, just in time to join the fray. Ron couldn't remember the man's last name, but he was glad to see him.

Snape's head twitched sideways to look at Rhys, and even that split second of distraction was enough. Draco twisted in Snape's grip, and rammed a knee into his stomach, pushing the older man off of him.

Dodging Rhys' next blast, Draco crashed into a statue and fell, laying still with his back to them.

"Come on!" Hermione said, grabbing at Ron's sleeve.

Relief written all over her face, she hurried down the stairs. Ron followed closely on her heels.

Snape slowly came to his feet with Rhys's aid, jerking away with an irritated growl.

"Are you all right, Severus?" he asked.

"Perfectly," Snape said. "What business is it of yours?"

"_Stupefy!"_

A red light surprised them all and dropped Snape like a stone.

Ron pushed Hermione down behind the banister on the last step. Rhys whirled to face Malfoy who was now crouched behind the base of a statue.

"Very careless to leave a wand lying about," Malfoy drawled. Then he stood up and walked toward Rhys, dangling the wand in his hand. It was Snape's own wand.

The howling and rumbling of the maelstrom outside continued to reverberate through the castle during the struggle. If anything, the noise had grown louder.

Ron remembered Harry telling him that his fencing instructor was a terrific at all kinds of duels, not just fencing. He'd sort Malfoy out soon enough.

Rhys kept his eye on Malfoy as he approached him, his dark features drawn into grim lines that Ron had never seen before.

"You should know," Hermione called out from behind the safety of the banister. "This isn't really Harry."

His eyes narrowed in her direction, but that was the only indication that Rhys had even heard her.

Malfoy didn't seem at all anxious about facing the Welshman. In fact, for a moment he just stood there with his arms folded in front of him, a corner of his mouth turned up in a small smirk.

The next words out of his mouth explained why. "It's about time you showed up," he said, unfolding his arms and walking toward the sealed front door. "I'm late. You better help me get this open – now!"

"Don't threaten me, Malfoy," Rhys said darkly. "I know where the body's buried."

Rubbing his left arm, Malfoy held his hand out impatiently. "Well…just give me my wand. Longbottom's wand was as useless as he is."

When Rhys didn't move, a dark look took over Malfoy's face. It was a look Ron had never seen on his friend Harry and it struck him as insane. Even Harry at his angriest had never seemed so possessed by evil. Yet here was that look on Harry's face.

"What have you done with my sister!" Ron shouted. Breaking cover and racing toward him, he cast a stunner at Malfoy.

"Lose her somewhere, did you?" Malfoy said, deflecting Ron's spell easily. "Have you checked the broom closets? Or maybe that greenhouse your loony friend likes to use?"

Malfoy's next shot went wide as he ducked to avoid Hermione's, "_Stupefy!"_

After casting an unsuccessful disarming hex, Ron was able to reach Malfoy and put him in a head lock. His lips near the Slytherin's ear, he said, "You were the last one to see her…tell me what happened…I'm not a patient person."

"I…I…ca—can't breathe…" Malfoy said, his face turning reddish purple and swelling up.

As Ron loosened his grip, Malfoy took advantage of his proximity and landed a sharp elbow in his stomach. Ron staggered back a few feet, but it was enough for Malfoy to cast a spell. It all happened very quickly.

As Ron battled to regain his footing, Malfoy's face contorted with dark rage and he shouted, _"Incido!"_

Ron watched as a purple streak lashed out the end of Malfoy's wand. They were standing too close together for him to do much more than stagger further back.

But before the light reached Ron, Rhys leapt in front of it, knocking Ron down and out of the way and bearing the brunt of the spell across his back.

Almost at the same moment, Hermione, who finally had a clear shot, stunned Malfoy so hard that he flew through the air across the entryway. His body made a sickening thud as it hit the stone wall, knocking over a suit of armor in the process. The axe propped against the armor landed squarely on Malfoy's arm, creating a nasty gash.

Turning to Ron, she said, "I'd heard enough."

Hands up in surrender, Ron said, "He wasn't going to tell us anything anyway. We'll have to find Ginny on our own."

Rhys was unconscious. He had fallen across Ron, pinning him down. Blood streamed from a deep, sickening incision across his back where Draco's spell had struck him.

Rushing over, Hermione kneeled down next to them. "Don't move, Ron."

"Is he…dead?" Ron asked, shocked at the blood soaking his clothes and gathering in a pool around them. He didn't know what was more distressing, the blood or the fact that Rhys had taken the hit for him.

"I…um…" Hermione ran her wand along the deep incision on Rhys' back, casting a first aid spell that she hoped would hold back most of the bleeding until they could get help. She held her fingers against Rhys' neck, feeling for a pulse.

Smiling softly when she found it, she nodded to Ron. Then her expression saddened. Tears brightened her eyes, and she asked, "So…where do you think the body's buried?"

* * *

The phoenix showed no signs of tiring as she flew them over the trees. They'd already flown a fair distance into the forest. Several miles back, Ginny had finished catching Harry up on what had been happening at Hogwarts. Risking a glance toward his feet, Harry watched the rolling hills and trees racing by underneath. 

"Where are we going?" Ginny asked softly, still pressed close to Harry as the phoenix flew them low over a pretty clearing.

"We're on our way to find a tanglewood tree."

A puzzled grumble from Ginny prompted Harry to explain. "One of those visions…it showed Myrddin constructing the torch, the one that protects Hart Fell…Aurora was there."

"So – just like that – you asked her to take you to find it? I guess we should have thought of that a long time ago." Ginny's soft laugh tickled against the sensitive skin of his neck.

"Just like that…" Harry echoed, thinking of all that he'd gone through to get them where they were, Ron and he exploring the cave, Hermione researching for countless hours, searching for Hart Fell in the snow, poor Neville trying to graft a tangleberry bush onto a tree.

The phoenix suddenly dove toward a grove giant oaks. The trees grew together in a thick stand. Without slowing down, Aurora flew under their dense canopy and continued, keeping up a breakneck pace so close to the ground that their feet could almost drag along the forest floor.

Her hands slipping at the unexpected drop, Ginny stifled a squeal and buried her face against Harry's neck.

"I've got you," Harry mumbled, tightening his grip.

"Where are we?" Ginny asked, her voice muffled against him.

Pulling back slightly so that he could see her face, Harry said, "I'm not sure exactly…deeper into the forest anyway."

The canopy of trees became denser and darker, blocking out the sun almost entirely. Their ancient trunks were thick and tall, leaving plenty of room for their flight.

Ginny opened her eyes, "I've never seen trees like this…they're huge!"

The air grew colder. Massive exposed roots covered the ground below with giant mushrooms nestled in their folds. Darkness surrounded them accompanied by an eerie sense of entering an ancient stronghold.

"What's that?" Ginny asked, pointing ahead this time. In the distance, he could see a patch of bright green and gold light.

As they approached, the light became a small clearing. Ferns and flowers filled the meadow and in the very center was a small tree. Aurora slowed, but didn't stop until she'd entered the clearing. Unceremoniously pitching Harry and Ginny onto the soft ground, she flew to perch on a low branch nearby.

Tumbling forward to gain their balance, they landed in yet another tangle of limbs, this time in a bed of feather soft ferns. Hastily sorting themselves out, they stood up and looked around, awed by what they saw. Ginny said something about working with Aurora on her landings, but Harry didn't catch it, he was already moving, picking his way through the ferns. His gaze remained fixed on the small tree growing in the center.

The tree grew low to the ground with finely turned limbs that were as tangled as the tree's name promised. Sunlight shone on bright golden leaves. They weren't gold in the sense of leaves turning to gold in the autumn, but a metallic gold, shining all the brighter because of the sun filtering through.

"It is a tanglewood tree, isn't it?" Ginny asked, sounding awed. "I thought they were just a myth."

"It's beautiful," Harry said.

Before she could answer, Ginny dropped to the ground suddenly, grasping her leg. "Ow…what is that?"

Twisting and crawling, Ginny made a hasty retreat from the ferns surrounding the tree. Once free, she sat down on a thick bed of pine needles of forest floor.

Rushing to her side, Harry dropped down and gently pried her fingers away. "Oh…it looks like a bite or something. Does it hurt?"

"It was a snake or something," Ginny said, sounding alarmed. "I…I feel dizzy, Harry. Do something…"

"What?" He didn't know anything about bites.

Ginny didn't answer. In fact, Harry barely had time to catch her as she fell back unconscious on the forest floor. The dusting of freckles across her nose stood out in stark contrast to her pale skin. Shaking her gently, Harry called her name, but she didn't respond.

Anger boiled up inside him. He'd let his guard down. He should have realized that such a precious tree would not be here defenseless.

"Snake!" Harry shouted. When there was no response, he closed his eyes and imagined the snake he'd spoken to in the zoo so many years before. With that image in his mind, he shouted, "Show yourself, snake!"

A large, green head slithered to edge of the ferns. "What does the human want?"

Harry realized they were speaking snake language now. It gave him hope. "What have you done to her?"

"The female has no right to come close to the golden tree."

"So you attacked her! Without any warning!" Harry shouted back.

"She is only sleeping. I haven't harmed her."

Tremendous relief flooded through him. Somehow Harry knew he could believe the snake. Hands shaking, he conjured a pillow under her head.

"Sss…so…you've come for a tanglewood branch." The snake did not sound hostile to Harry, just curious. "How did you find us?"

"Owain and Merlin showed me the way," Harry said, hoping if he dropped their names, the snake would let him pass. "I have no time to speak with you…people are in danger. I need the branch to protect them."

"As is your right," the snake said, looking back at the tree. "You may pass."

Leaving Ginny's side for a moment, Harry walked as quickly as he could toward the beautiful tree.

Turning back toward the snake, he sighed heavily. "How am I supposed to break a branch off?"

Deciding that a quick severing charm might be the best thing, Harry stepped forward and took hold of one of the twisted, clawlike branches. Speaking aloud, his tone apologetic, he said, "I need a branch to light the torch."

Before he could pull on the branch or utter the severing charm, the limb fell into his hands. The snake slithering around Harry's feet, gathered the gold leaves as they immediately fell away.

Uttering a quick thank you in Parseltongue, the snake disappeared into the thick ferns.

For a moment, Harry stood motionless. He looked the branch over carefully. Without the leaves, there were several twisted prongs free on the end of the limb – the perfect holder for one of the crystals from the cave. It seemed to him all of this was happening for a reason, as though he were stepping along a path he was meant to follow. He had to press forward with his plan, but what could he do for Ginny.

Glancing quickly around the clearing, Harry walked over to the sleeping Ginny and tucking the tanglewood securely into his belt. Lifting Ginny gently into his arms, he signaled to his phoenix. At his signal, Aurora flew to his side. He asked her to Apparate them back. They weren't searching for something now. The phoenix answered by gripping him with a golden talon and taking flight. Apparently Apparating wasn't possible, even for a phoenix.

Time seemed to be more important now. He'd been out of touch with it for so long, not even knowing whether it was night or day in the cave. But if what all the things Ginny had told him were true, he needed to get back to Hogwarts before it was too late.

Harry held Ginny carefully as they landed once again in Aurora's meadow. Conjuring another pillow, he made her as comfortable as he could. Aurora hovered over them.

Harry stood up and spoke to the phoenix. "I can't leave her like this. You'll have to stay with her, Aurora. Help her however you can when she wakes up."

The phoenix landed near Ginny and tilted her head over her leg, dropping her tears into the wound there.

Harry didn't stop her. He was mentally kicking himself for not thinking of it first.

As Ginny woke up blinking against the bright light, Aurora sang happily and sailed through the air toward her nest.

"Ginny!" Harry said, relieved that she'd recovered. "You're all right."

"How did we get back here…what happened?" Ginny mumbled her questions, still sounding sleepy.

"There's no more time, Ginny." Harry said, standing up. "I have to go…"

"Wait. What? Don't you mean…_we_ have to go?" Ginny asked, scrambling to her feet and looking him straight in the eye.

"Anything could be happening back at Hogwarts," Harry said, meeting her gaze. "Something triggered the wards. Something set the fire. It's not safe."

A flash of what he'd seen in his visions came back to him.

_A dragon, red as blood and pitiless as plague, roaring its way into camp…_

Harry looked at her, silently pleading with her to just agree, as he signaled Aurora once again.

Ginny's jaw dropped and her face reddened as she realized Harry was seriously planning to leave her behind. "If I'd decided to play it safe today, you'd still be trapped in that cave. What will you do if there's trouble?"

"If there's trouble, I'll come back…or I'll send Aurora back. She'll take care of you. I promise." He looked away, knowing he would probably give in if he saw her expression.

Her voice took on a dangerous tone, "Oh, no, I'm coming with you. You can't just leave me behind while you rush off into danger."

Pulling his rucksack out of his pocket, Harry enlarged it and started rummaging around inside.

"Ginny, there's no time to sort this out. You've been through enough already. Anyway, I have to construct the torch by myself -- "

She knew all about the torch. They'd discussed it many times. The torch spell was complicated. He couldn't have any distractions, or it might not work.

"And who'll be there to watch your back?" Ginny asked, scowling at him.

Harry realized she'd never agree. She could be so stubborn. He found was he'd been looking for – a large crystal from the cave. Briefly holding it up to the light, he slipped it into his pocket without explanation. Then shrank his pack and put it away, too.

Shaking her head in disbelief, Ginny watched the whole process.

Harry sighed and tried again. "There could be danger -- "

"It's my choice, isn't it?" Ginny said, grabbing the front of his shirt. "I have just as much right to defend Hogwarts as you do. You can't make decisions for me."

Harry didn't answer her. Now that he had the tanglewood branch, he knew he had to try…and he had to try alone. He'd seen it in the cave.

_Fire and smoke and the broken lines, men deserting their posts, falling over each other to escape. A wizard with long white hair and a beard standing, holding his twisted staff over his head. Light bursting forth as—_

Ginny glared at his sudden quiet. "I'm going, Harry. And that's final."

Taking her hands in his, he tried to think of a way to make her understand, but nothing came to him.

Ginny was about to speak, but before she had a chance, Harry said, "I'm sorry…but I have to do this alone."

With that he took hold of Aurora's tail feathers and disappeared in a flash of fire.

Ginny blinked at the empty spot where Harry had been. She took in the peaceful surroundings of the clearing, the sound of birds chirping in a nearby thicket, the smell of fresh grass and the golden glow cast by the setting sun.

"Oh, you utter…git!"

The birdsong cut off abruptly. She dug into her pocket, pulling free a butterbeer cap. She'd been carrying the Portkey around for ages -- ever since Harry had given it to her on their way to Hogsmeade. Looking down at the bent piece of metal in the palm of her hand, she closed her fingers around it.

"Refuge!" she whispered.

Ginny felt the tug of the Porkey as the clearing dissolved, replaced moments later by the Hogwarts infirmary.

**To Be Continued…**


	35. Myrddin's Torch

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: This is alternate universe now. Although this story was written before the HBP, I wanted to finish posting it.

Thanks for reading and reviewing!

**Chapter 35  
****Myrddin's Torch**

The sound of the dragons was louder in the infirmary, or maybe it just seemed more intense because of the smell of smoke and the brush of wings and claws near the glass. Ron turned away from the window and watched as Hermione helped Madam Pomfrey settle the still unconscious Rhys into a bed. Malfoy's curse had cut deep and the wound was still seeping blood.

He looked over to the farthest corner of the infirmary, where Snape kept a vigil over Malfoy's body. After they'd managed to revive him, Professor Snape had waved off everyone's help. Snape tried without success to remove the illusion that had made Malfoy look like Harry. He remained by Malfoy's side, refusing to let Madam Pomfrey look over his own condition until everything that could be done for the younger man had been done.

Malfoy couldn't be far enough away for Ron. He'd beenall forObliviating Malfoy and sending him to St. Mungo's, or just finding a way to put him outside the gates with the dragons and the trolls.

Hermione, of course, had silenced Ron's suggestions and insisted that he help Professor Snape.

Other than Rhys and Draco, there were four other patients in the infirmary. Blaise Zabini had briefly stuck his head out from behind a partition when they'd first arrived, giving Ron the idea that Sophie Moon was probably there. Two first years who Ron reckoned might be Hufflepuffs were tucked into beds near Madam Pomfrey's office. They were currently sporting some sort of orange burn paste, having been rescued by Hagrid from one of the Greenhouse fires. And, of course, Neville Longbottom.

As if oblivious to the menace outside, Neville greeted Ron pleasantly, wearing the standard issue infirmary pajamas, and playing with his covers.

At first glance, Neville seemed to have acquired a large bruise, but on closer inspection, it looked more like someone had dumped a glass of dark purple grape juice over his head, then coated him with something shiny. They'd been through this before.

Hermione came up quietly and slipped her hand into Ron's.

"That's not tangleberry juice on your face, is it, Neville?" Hermione asked, squinting at him.

Nodding, Neville explained. "I was going to show Harry my new discovery. It's a potion that'll unstick anything. I tested it with the tangleberry concentrate. But when I woke him up he grabbed the ball of juice out of my hand, and then he tried to take away my wand. We wrestled with it a bit...that's the last thing I remember."

He pushed at the skin on his face delicately. "I think he may have smashed me over the head with the juice ball in the scuffle…er…but not before I got in a few good pokes myself."

He punched the air as if demonstrating.

"Uh…didn't Harry seem a bit different to you?" Ron asked, his eyes wandering around the infirmary, looking anywhere but at Neville's gooey face.

Sticking his fingers into the jar on his bedside table and pulling out a big gob of a clear gelatinous mixture, Neville muttered under his breath, "Yeah, he seemed different. He's never fought with me before…"

Neville spread the goo on his forehead, looking visibly relieved. "What exactly is wrong with him?" he asked, waving in the general direction of the Malfoy and Snape.

Something inside Ron broke. Speaking with a little too much heat, he said, "That's Malfoy…trying to trick us because the real Harry's gone…and now Ginny -- "

He didn't want to finish that sentence, voicing his fears about what may have happened to his sister. He looked over at Rhys, wishing he was in good enough shape for them to question, but the Welshman was deathly pale and Madam Pomfrey had forbidden any of them to go near him.

"We don't know that for sure, Ron. And Harry could be – " Hermione called over to him.

Raising his hand palm up, Ron said, "I know…I just…" His mouth settled into grim lines.

Hermione said, "No sense borrowing trouble. We have enough as it is."

"So that's Malfoy!" Neville said in a shocked voice. "I should have hexed him into tomorrow. I only held back because I thought it was Harry."

Neither Ron nor Hermione answered, preoccupied as they were with deciding what to do. They weren't any closer to finding out what happened to Ginny, or to the real Harry.

"Rhys won't wake up for hours…days maybe. We should find Dumbledore," Hermione said, speaking quietly and giving Snape a surreptitious glance. "He's the only one who can help us now. Besides…someone should tell him what's happened."

"Hang on…won't the Headmaster be a bit busy?" Neville sputtered. "Pomfrey's probably already contacted him…I wager he has his hands full right about now."

"He must be in the astronomy tower. That's where he sent Moody earlier," Ron said, motioning toward the door with a quick nod. "C'mon…we'd best slip out while Snape's busy with Malfoy."

Professor Snape had his back to them. He hadn't once even turned around. And Madam Pomfrey had disappeared for the moment behind Sophie Moon's partition. It seemed the time was right so Ron and Hermione headed toward the exit, still totally ignoring Neville and speaking as if no one else were in the room.

"The staircases might be blocked? I read once…" Hermione had the grace to blush slightly as she was obviously about to quote once again from Hogwarts a History.

Ron slipped his hand into hers to reassure her.

"Anyway Professor Dumbledore mentioned it earlier. The founders created a ward to still the staircases in midair…to prevent anyone from reaching the upper towers in case of an attack on the castle."

"Don't worry about that…you're not the only one that knows a few shortcuts." Ron spoke with confidence. "Harry and I've studied that map often enough."

Hermione raised an eyebrow as if she was about to disapprove.

Opening the door for her, Ron said quickly, "Wouldn't want to be late to class."

Giving him a small smile, Hermione walked through the door. Ron began to follow, but stopped short, stilling to listen to a strange sound. Loud enough to be heard over the constant drumming of the dragons, it nonetheless sounded far off. It seemed like the cry of a crowd, like someone had just caught the snitch, coming from somewhere outside the castle. It was followed shortly by a loud "Oomph!" and a cry of pain from Neville.

Hermione's head whipped around at Neville's cry. Ron followed her gaze to find a heap of dirty torn clothes and a tangle of long red hair splayed on top of Neville Longbottom.

Racing back, Ron couldn't help but grin widely at the sight. He recognized that hair.

"Ginny!" Hermione called as she ran toward her friend. "It's such a relief to find you…we…er…"

She stopped as she neared the bed and received a death glare from Ginny. Ignoring Neville's whining, Ginny clambered off of him and smoothed her dirty, torn shirt.

Ron beat Hermione across the room, but he hesitated as he took in Ginny's appearance. She looked angry, livid in fact. Her clothes were disheveled and her hair was in a wild tangle with stray bits of white flowers and grass in it. And her eyes were flashing dangerously. Something or someone had seriously pissed her off.

"What…how?" Ron asked, then he just grabbed her up in his big arms. "Who cares…I was so worried. Don't disappear like that again…we hadn't the slightest idea where to start looking."

She wriggled out of his arms. "Let me go…"

Ron knew he must have looked hurt because her expression softened as she straightened her clothes again and looked up at him.

"I…I'm glad to see you, but I need to find Harry." Sparing a glance at the other patients, she said, "Malfoy's still out, yeah?"

A sympathetic silence followed as Ron and Hermione exchanged uncomfortable looks. Neither wanted to be the one to tell Ginny that Aurora had disappeared from Dumbledore's office, or Rhys' mysterious comment about knowing where the body's buried.

Ginny broke the silence, holding out the bent butterbeer cap for them to see. "Harry gave me a Portkey. He wanted me to be safe."

She said this rolling her eyes as though it were the most ridiculous idea Harry had ever had.

"I'd say his Portkey Charm needs a bit of work," said Neville quietly as Ginny hurried toward the door.

Everyone ignored his comment and followed Ginny.

"Harry was only trying to do the right thing by giving you a Portkey…at least it paid off. You're here, and you're safe," Ron said, looking confused.

Ginny pulled the door open. With her wild appearance and her rant about finding Harry, Ron didn't think she was in any kind of shape to go anywhere. At least until someone like Madam Pomfrey had a chance to look her over.

"Where've you been exactly?" Ron asked, his long strides finally overtaking her.

He slipped in front her, blocking her exit and waiting expectantly for an answer.

"You don't understand…there's no time," Ginny cried as she tried to step around her brother and reach the door.

"Of course," Hermione said, joining in Ron's effort to stop Ginny from leaving. "We can't understand until you explain. We're ready to listen." Pulling out her wand, Ginny said, "Step away from the door…both of you. Keep your hands where I can see them."

Shocked, they both did what she asked. As she passed Ron, he thought he heard her mutter under her breath, something like, "I'm gonna make sure he's safe…then I'm gonna kill him."

Hermione and Ron chased after Ginny. She was moving fast, grumbling under her breath, but Ron again caught him up to her side as she rounded the corner.

"Nearly break my neck getting him out of that cave, and what does he do? Leaves me, that's what. Of all the…"

She trailed off, saving her breath for the long hike down the hall.

"What cave? Kill who?" Ron asked, trying to keep up with her.

"Harry," Ginny said shortly, barely glancing his way.

"What about Harry?" Hermione gasped. She'd put on an extra burst of speed and now kept pace on Ginny's other side.

"Harry," Ginny said. "Was trapped in that cave – Myrddin's Den – or whatever it was called."

"That's where you've been?" Ron asked, scowling at her.

"Yes! But when I told him about that weird alarm going off, he started talking about that tanglewood tree again and making the torch, and then! He left me there -- as if I was going to stand for that!"

She snorted.

"So Harry's here?" Hermione asked, sounding unsure.

"Of course he's here…I think."

Ginny tried to race ahead, but Ron grabbed her elbow, and hauled her back to his side, as he and Hermione stopped in there tracks.

"What?" she snapped.

Ron's mouth opened and shut. He took a deep breath.

"We have to tell Dumbledore!" Hermione cut in.

Ron grimaced and pointed at Hermione. "What she said."

"We can tell him later, we have to find --"

"Ginny! Do you honestly think you're the only person who's been worried about Harry?" Ron asked.

Ginny looked away, and then back at him. "No, of course not, but --"

She clenched her jaw and began her race down the corridor as if she was finished trying to explain. Ron and Hermione followed.

"Sounds like Harry had to go by himself. If he planned to set up the torch," Hermione said, breathlessly as they raced up to the Astronomy Tower. "From what I read, it takes a lot of concentration and power to construct the torch spell. It has to be done alone – "

"Someone has to watch his back!" Ginny shouted, halting on her way down the last corridor.

Ron and Hermione caught up to her again. The stress of the day was showing. Ginny looked worn out and upset. Hermione tried to reassure her by patting her shoulder, but Ginny pushed her hand away.

"Ginny…he'd be worried about you – er, us – the whole time." Hermione put her hand on Ginny's shoulder and this time the younger girl didn't pull away. "There've always been times when Harry had to face things alone. He's a great wizard. He'll be all right."

Ginny didn't answer. She knew Hermione had a point, but it didn't make it any easier.

"At least let's go tell Dumbledore Harry's all right. He deserves to know," Ron said. "And after that we can go find Harry together."

She wavered, and Ron tightened his grip on her elbow. Finally, she nodded.

"All right," she said. "Let's go."

"More running," Hermione grumbled.

They raced down to the end of the hallway, and turned right towards the staircases that led to the top of the Astronomy tower. Outside, the roar of beasts came through the thick stone walls. Ron shivered, but increased his speed.

Climbing the last few steps to the top of the Astronomy Tower, she stopped short. Ron and Hermione stepped around her to take a look for themselves.

On thetallest parapet, the Headmaster stood with his arms outstretched, caught in a golden web, as if he'd woven himself into the fabric of the wards. Gossamer tendrils spread all around him, and he seemed to be in some sort of trance, communing with air around him.

Professor Moody, standing at the edge of the gleaming web, turned and nodded to them. "Don't know what brings you here," he said, gruffly, "but as you can see, we're busy. You'd best get back inside."

"But we need to speak with Professor Dumbledore," Hermione said, with a skeptical glance toward the Headmaster.

"He's busy. You can't talk to him now." Moody turned away from them and moved over to the Headmaster's side.

"Sorry to disturb…" Ron said, backing away and pulling on Hermione's hand.

She resisted, seeming mesmerized by the sight of the attack beneath the tower. Moving as close as she could to the edge, she took in the sight. Ron and Ginny joined her.

"Whoa…they can't be held back forever…can they?" Ron asked.

"Hogwarts has never fallen…not even during the Goblin Rebellion of 1529 when the Wizarding Lord Protector and all of his men had retreated here from London," Moody grumbled. "But watching all of this…"

Touching his wand to the web in front of him, Moody began to incant something under his breath.

The dragons had increased tenfold, filling the sky with their smoky swarms. The grounds around the castle smoldered with the remains of small outbuildings and trees, the acrid scent permeating the air. But they were no longer the only beasts threatening the castle. From here, other creatures could be seen lining the gates and hovering near the forest. They strained against some invisible line as if waiting for a signal. As the Headmaster had predicted, trolls and giants swelled the ranks, beating the ground with clubs and growling angrily.

"But Professor Moody…" Hermione said, determined to tell someone. "Ginny has news about Harry."

Moody glanced over his shoulder with his wild eye spinning to a stop on Ginny. "You're sure this time? It could be another illusion."

"He had his phoenix with him," Ginny said.

Before anyone could respond to what she'd said, all conversation ceased as a loud outcry came from the gates of Hogwarts. The soundwasn't human, but it was accompanied by a very human shout of celebration. Ron and Hermione leaned over the stone wall, Ginny elbowing her way between them for a better look. A few more minutes of clamors and cheers came from the crowd near the gate followed.

From out of the gloom a bright bird, the size of a large swan, appeared. Slipping effortlessly through the golden web of wards, Aurora landed lightly on Ginny's shoulder. She trilled a quick greeting before turning her attention to what was happening at the gate.

"Harry's here," Ron said, stating the obvious.

No one answered as their attention was focused trying to see what they could down by the gates.

The sky had turned a fiery red as the sunlight slanted across the grounds. Ron couldn't see through the gathering twilight and the smoke risingfrom thegrounds. Death Eaters, trolls, creatures that flew and others that crawled, they were all cavorting in terrible glee at whatever was happening at the gate. Ron glanced at Hermione, who was biting her lip and glaring fiercely at the scene.

Without warning, a bright light pierced the gloom, banishing the twilight and showing the angry red clouds to be plain grey. Night turned to day as the brightness spread. It seemed to reach every corner of the castle before moving on to the Forbidden Forest and the lake. A whoosh and a pulsating wave of energy surged with it, filling them all with a sense of peace. Then as swiftly as it had come, the light went out, followed by complete and utter silence.

* * *

The gates of Hogwarts had sealed themselves shut the moment the alarm had first sounded. For the better part of the afternoon, the creatures at the gate – even the Death Eaters who'd finally arrived in the late afternoon -- had tried everything to breech the wards. As their attack intensified, the statues of the winged boars had sprung to life and defeated every attempt to enter the grounds. 

Their struggle had worn on for hours. Now they grew cold as the sun prepared to set, angry red streaking the sky interspersed with billowing clouds of smoldering ash.

A shadow fell over the throng. A huge winged shape passed closely over their heads, cutting off the bright orange of the setting sun. The trolls stared dumbly, but the wizards present dropped to the ground, covering their heads with their arms to protect themselves. Those who dared to look up, saw something unlike anything they'd ever seen. Through the cloud of soot and smoke, a dragon arrived. It was shiny like an Opaleye, but as red as fresh blood. And on its back rode a figure they both feared and admired. The dragon flew unnaturally low to the ground.

Without any warning, the beast reared back his long, beautiful neck and let out a roar. Sooty flames shot into the air over their heads, showering them with hot ash. Wizards and beasts alike clamored to get out of the way, clearing a space for the creature to land. Voldemort laughed at their discomfort and raised a bony fist high in the air as his mount touched the ground.

The crowd gave a celebratory cheer at what seemed to be a crowning achievement for their master. None of them had ever seen anyone riding a dragon before. With his astounding power, they would soon overrun the castle. The flying boars were no match for him. Neither was Dumbledore. Hogwarts would certainly be a prize.

* * *

Harry kept the tanglewood branch under his cloak as Aurora dropped him directly outside Hogwarts' front door. She settled on his shoulder with a flutter of wings. He'd arrived just in time to hear a loud cry down by the gates. Hogwarts appeared to be holding strong against the onslaught. While the grounds smoldered from the attack, the castle itself appeared to be standing firm. 

"Go back to Ginny, Aurora…she needs you," Harry said, but the phoenix remained on his shoulder, unmoved by his words. He wondered briefly if he should go back for her himself, but without Aurora's help, he'd have no way to get her inside the relative safety of the castle.

No way could he bring Ginny onto the grounds with dangerous creatures flying overhead and more of them beating at the gate. Speaking of which, he'd have to get down to the gate to construct the torch. That would be the best place.

From here he could see a creature hovering over the crowd at the gate. A stream of fire poured from the wide mouth of the beast, indiscriminately spraying the crowd gathered there as it swept its neck back and forth.

Smoke and the gathering dark made it hard to see the reaction, but Harry could hear screams mixed with cheers. Panic mounted as he felt his scar burn. There was no question about it – Voldemort was down there with them.

He waited until a low flying cloud of angry dragons had swung toward the lake. Taking a deep breath, he flung himself forward, jumping through the smoke and beginning to run toward the main gates where a massive crowd of black robed figures had gathered. As if they were on one of their morning runs around the lake, Aurora took flight and circled overhead.

Lungs burning, Harry continued to run. He couldn't imagine what would make Voldemort think that it would be easier to enter the school through the main gates.

As Harry drew near enough to see the crowd, clamoring and cheering, he decided there was no turning back. He had to try – even if this spell failed. Voldemort, at least, must be sure that his plan would succeed, otherwise, he wouldn't put on such an elaborate show. But whatever the plan was, they hadn't reckoned on Harry showing up. That might be enough to tip the scales against the Death Eaters.

If Ginny was right, Voldemort would be expecting Malfoy, disguised as Harry to open the castle gates and defect. That might give him just enough time to construct the torch spell before Voldemort figured out that he wasn't Malfoy and tried to kill him.

He only hoped that Malfoy hadn't already succeeded in reaching the gates, but either way, he had to try to put up the torch.

Straining to see what was happening at the gate through the smoky grounds, Harry didn't see the rogue dragon streaking toward him until it was too late to react. A glimpse of green scales crossed his face as the beast lashed out at Harry, knocking him to the ground with his spiked tail. Gasping at the flash of pain coursing through his shoulder, Harry still managed to roll with the blow. He came out of the roll into a crouch just as the dragon turned toward him and opened his jaws.

As Harry shot a _Confundus Charm_ at the creature, Aurora grabbed him by the shoulders and dragged him wide. He landed on his feet, counting himself lucky that she hadn't whisked him back to the clearing with Ginny.

The blast of flame from the animal burnt the ground near Harry, but did him no harm. And his _Confundus Charm_ had apparently found its mark, causing the dragon to fly away disoriented. Harry wondered briefly why the dragon wasn't affected by his torque, but he didn't have time to dwell on it.

Soothing as it was to feel Aurora's soft feathers against his cheek, he tried again to convince the phoenix to go back to Ginny. "I have to do this alone. They won't be fooled into thinking I'm Malfoy if you're riding on my shoulder. Besides, I promised Ginny that you'd stay with her. Keep her safe…don't leave her until I come find you."

This time, Aurora left him, but instead of Disapparating, she flew toward the Astonomy Tower.

Shaking his head at the capricious phoenix, Harry continued on his path. Ignoring the blood streaming from his shoulder and the shakiness of his legs, Harry hurtled across the scorched earth toward the crowd at the gates.

When he had drawn within thirty feet, he could distinguish Voldemort, sitting astride a large red beast. Black against the fiery sunset, he lorded over the crowd. The beast he was on appeared to be some kind of dragon, one who was curiously willing to be ridden. Voldemort's voice rang out over the crowd, welcoming Harry as if he'd been expecting him.

Assuming this show for Voldemort's followers had been part of Draco's plan, Harry resolved to make it work in his favor -- for as long as he could. He covered the remaining ground to the gate as quickly as he could.

Standing tall in his stirrups so all of his forces could see him, Voldemort shouted imperiously, "See how he runs to join my service. Harry Potter…the great hope of the wizarding world. Come and bow down, Potter."

Voldemort smiled and pointed his long, bony finger at Harry, putting him on display for his followers.

Slipping out easily enough, Harry gathered his courage as he heard the wards clamp the gates shut tight behind him. He glanced uneasily around at the crowd who were mostly wearing masks. Slightly breathless from running, Harry didn't quite take in all of Voldemort's speech.

"Open the gates for us, Potter…to prove where your loyalties lie. Once Hogwarts is ours, all wizards everywhere will realize how futile resistance is."

Ignoring the fear growing within him, Harry drew close enough to see the gleam in the wizard's red eyes. Harry concentrated hard to keep his mental shields in place so he wouldn't give away his true identity. He had a feeling he'd be getting a very different reception if Voldemort hadn't expected Draco Malfoy to come out of the castle and open the gates, pretending to be Harry.

"What have you brought me?" Voldemort asked, his voice sounding imperious and commanding.

Pulling the tanglewood from underneath his cloak, Harry ignored Voldemort and set about constructing the torch. It would take time to repeat the spell. Preparing the wood as he'd seen in his vision, he reached up and let the two winged boar statues touch the wood. They immediately flew to their former positions as twin stone guardians of the gates. His voice rough from all the smoke, Harry cleared his throat impatiently and began to recite the incantation, concentrating on not making any mistakes. He wouldn't get a second chance if the spell didn't work.

Voldemort's flat nose stretched as his lips spread into a wide smile. As if he was being magnanimous, he said, "He's come to show us how to break down the wards."

Intent on finishing the lengthy charm, Harry didn't answer. Focusing on the wood, he could feel the energy building within it. The fist-sized crystal from Myrddin's cave began to hum as he closed his fingers around it in his pocket. The sudden surge of power knocked Harry to his knees.

Voldemort relaxed his posture and his lips split his face in an evil smile. The crowd surged forward with another cry of triumph. Surveying the reaction among his ranks, he gave a shout and asked, "Shall I be merciful and let him join…or shall I kill him now for all his past offences?"

Before the crowd could answer, a black robed figure broke through the mob.

Through the white fog in his mind, Harry watched it all happen. He heard the crowd shouting for his death, but he couldn't stop the incantation now, he had to let it build up inside him. He couldn't become distracted. He could feel it growing and expanding.

Running toward Harry, Bellatrix pulled off her mask and shouted, "What is this trickery!"

Her long black hair swung around her face as she reached Harry before anyone could stop her. "This wasn't part of the plan. He's up to something -- stop him!" she shouted.

Taking the crystal from his pocket, Harry placed the stone in the claw like prongs on the end of the tanglewood branch.

At the same moment, Bellatrix aimed her wand at Harry and yelled, "_Relashio!"_

Most of her curse was absorbed in the light from his torque, but it went unnoticed. As Harry placed the crystal, a blinding pulse of white light shot from within the stone. It launched back through the gates toward the castle, highlighting every stone of the building before illuminating the grounds and the lake. As the light turned the gathering twilight into day, it also expelled the besieging creatures.

Harry could feel the spell searching the castle and grounds. The crystal spun in the end of the wood, weaving its ancient magic around the castle and grounds.

It happened too fast to take it all in. The swarms that had been threatening the castle all afternoon, were repelled, their cries heard fading into the distant hills. The trolls in the forest and the giants by the gate, were hurled back into the throng of attackers.

Spitting vile threats, Voldemort tried to lash out at Harry, but he struggled to control the beast he was riding. The dragon recoiled from the spell, rearing back and clawing the air blindly, thrashing its long neck in a wild spiral.

Before anyone could recover from the blinding light of the spell, Harry finished the incantation. The final word of the spell hung heavy in the air, deep and ringing, and then both Harry and Hogwarts vanished. The torch, the gates, the winged boars and the castle with its massive towers and vast stoneworks, all disappeared into thin air, leaving Voldemort and his followers alone on a windswept Scottish hillside.

No longer able to hear the shouts and clamoring of the crowd, or the vitriol from Voldemort, Harry saw a darkness looming overhead, then the first signs of stars in a clear night sky. Closing his eyes, the last thing he remembered before he lost consciousness was the stars beginning to spin.

TBC…

A/N: Almost finished. Your comments are welcome.


	36. Stronger Together

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: This story was written after the OoTP and the HBP. Thanks for taking the time to read and especially thanks for taking the time to review. I've loved reading them. 

**Chapter 36  
****Stronger Together**

Moonlight streamed through the high windows of the Hogwarts infirmary. The sky outside was bright with stars. It was a familiar sight to Harry, although he really had no idea how he came to be there. He was supposed to remember…something, but he couldn't think what. A great, peaceful cloud had settled over his mind. Someone had wrapped him in a blanket charmed for warmth. He welcomed its wonderful softness and gave up trying to remember, letting his eyelids fall blissfully closed.

Sometime later, Madam Pomfrey's office door broke open, warm yellow light spilling out into the blue darkness. The light and the sounds broke through the fog in Harry's consciousness. He could hear voices inside, quiet voices…and the faint sound of…laughter?

Confused, Harry closed his eyes and tried to remember. _A red dragon….a seething throng calling for his death…Bellatrix aiming her wand…Voldemort screaming out the obscene things he planned to do to him…then the white light of the spell and the wave of purifying energy that came with it._

The torch spell must have worked, or he'd be dead, wouldn't he?

"He's awake…" whispered Ron.

"No, he's not…see the even breathing and the way his eyes are closed?" Hermione laughed softly. "Let's go…he needs his rest."

"But…I have to talk to him. What if--"

"What if he's another illusion? He's not…anyway, Madam Pomfrey told us that he has to sleep or his recovery could become difficult."

"It's been almost two days." Ron said, then he grumbled something about Pomfrey celebrating too hard to notice if they woke Harry up.

Their voices grew fainter as they turned away, but Harry didn't want them to go. The cloud had lifted from his mind. He remembered what he had to do. Pushing painfully up on one elbow, he forced himself to speak. His voice sounded groggy and hoarse. "Wait…

They turned back toward him immediately.

"Harry!" Hermione called, unable to curtail her enthusiasm. She practically skipped across the infirmary in the moonlight.

Ron followed her back to Harry's bed. "Ha! Told you he was awake."

Their smiles faded slightly as they saw Harry's feeble attempt to smile back. Hermione lit the lamp next to his bed and sat down in the chair by his bed, taking his hand in hers.

"Welcome back, Harry." She gave him a shy smile. "We've all missed you terribly."

Standing behind her in the small circle of light, Ron nodded his agreement.

Nodding in return, Harry struggled to sit up. "Ginny!" he said, his voice still rough.

Ron and Hermione exchanged looks that Harry couldn't see properly without his contact lenses or glasses. Reaching a shaky hand out toward the bedside table, he fumbled around until he found his old glasses and put them on.

"I have to go back to Ginny. She'll be crazy with worry by now." Slipping his legs out from under the covers, he said, "Help me find my clothes."

"Er…sorry…we should have realized," Hermione said, shooting Ron a worried look.

"It's over, mate. Get back in bed." Ron towered over Harry as if ready to physically restrain him.

"What Ron means is that Ginny is perfectly fine," Hermione said. "She's resting. I'm sure she'll be here the minute she finds out you're awake."

Harry looked to Ron for confirmation. He thought his friend seemed a little doubtful, but at Ron's nod, he let Hermione help him back under the covers. He felt wicked tired, anyway.

Settling back into the bedside chair, Hermione looked at him with pride. "You did it! Harry…what…how? I want to hear all about it. Start at the beginning and don't leave anything out."

Smoothing down the edge of his sheet for a moment, lost in thought, Harry said, "I…figured out some things while I was trapped in the cave. There wasn't anything else to do. I studied the books I'd brought, especially the Myrddin's Torch book…I thought it might hold a clue about how to escape."

Harry looked at each of his friends in turn. Ron gave him a pitying look, presumably at his admission that he'd had nothing else to do but study. Hermione still appeared to be bursting with pride and excitement.

"The ruby from the box…oddly enough, it held something…"

Pausing to clear his throat, Harry remembered the visions in the cave. It had been strange. Not really like watching something in a pensieve, more like experiencing someone else's memories.

Drinking the glass of water Hermione offered him, he said, "I'm convinced that it would only have worked in that cave. The walls, the floor, the whole cave was made entirely of crystal -- "

Hermione interjected. "I read somewhere that pure crystal is the best amplifier of magical energy in the natural world."

Smiling at her enthusiasm, Harry continued. "I don't know what triggered it, but the ruby began to give off sparks and then they were spinning around…and then it was like a blast…it knocked me down and…then there were…"

Ron looked skeptical, but Hermione seemed eager for him to try to explain.

It was an effort to speak. Harry still felt very tired, but he wanted to tell them. "Suddenly I was remembering all sorts of things, but the memories really…weren't my memories…they belonged to someone else."

"Like a vision?" Hermione said.

"Like Trelawney," Ron said, with a smirk.

Hermione's exasperated look silenced him quick enough. Anyway, privately Harry agreed with Ron…the whole experience with the ruby reminded him of one of Trelawney's trances – only they were about the past instead of the future.

"The memories belonged to Owain. I saw everything through his eyes." Harry figured his friends probably thought he was round the bend, but it was what had happened. "Do you remember the ghost of Niniane, Ron?"

"I remember you telling me about her…" Ron said.

"Owain was the man the ghost kept confusing you with," Hermione said, as usual completely correct.

"I'm fairly sure these were specially selected memories from his life…especially his dealings with Merlin." Harry paused to see what his friends thought, but neither of them said anything so he went on. "And they did show me how to get out of the cave…only it wouldn't work from the inside…but then Ginny was – where'd you say Ginny was?"

Harry's voice was beginning to sound shaky and he felt light headed.

"She's asleep," Hermione said slowly, standing and turning to Ron as if getting ready to go. "And maybe you should be too."

But Harry wanted to finish the story…and then maybe he'd go find Ginny…just to see for himself. He might need Ron and Hermione's help to get all the way up to Gryffindor.

Making a determined effort to steady his voice, he sat up a little higher and continued. "Wait…I'm all right. Let me finish. One of the visions showed Merlin using a crystal from the cave to construct a torch spell, protecting Hart Fell…"

His voice trailed off, even this small exertion was difficult, but he had succeeded in catching Hermione's interest. She sat back down.

"Hart Fell," Hermione said, with a quick nod. "Of course, that's where the legends say he spent his later years…at his refuge in Hart Fell. And Ginny said – that is – that's where your phoenix has been taking you…to Hart Fell."

"And the weather's beautiful, even in the winter. And the trees are lush and full." Ron said as though he was repeating something. He laughed. "Ginny gave us an earful about the beauties of the ancient forest."

"If everything she told us is true, then it seems like the torch protects the area from the weather, too."

Hermione looked at him sharply, but Harry couldn't answer her. He simply didn't know.

"Where is she?" Harry asked, avoiding Hermione's gaze. He wouldn't feel right until he had a chance to talk things over with Ginny. He hoped he hadn't bollixed everything by leaving her behind.

"She was tired and hurt." Hermione gave him an appraising look. "Madam Pomfrey insisted that she take a sleeping draught and go to Gryffindor."

"Hurt?" Harry said, wincing as he bolted upright. "Help me…"

"She's all right. It was only bumps and bruises. Madam Pomfrey healed most of them with a quick wave of her wand," Hermione said, pushing him back against his pillow and shaking her head. "You on the other hand, took a dragon's spike across your back and a nasty curse to your chest--only partially deflected from the look of it. _And _you're suffering from exhaustion."

Her voice dropped conspiratorially. "We're not even supposed to be here, but…we couldn't stay away."

"Maybe you should go then…you could go check on Ginny. Make sure she's all right." Harry knew he was ranting a bit. Maybe his head wasn't quite as clear as he'd thought. "I mean did anyone manage to find Malfoy? And Rhys -- Rhys can't be trusted and he…"

"Oh, Ginny's protected all right -- " Ron said in a mocking tone.

His words were cut short by Hermione elbowing him in the ribs.

"Ow -- your friend Rhys is in that bed on the end. He's not going anywhere…" Ron's voice dropped lower. "In fact, they've done all they can do. He hasn't woken up yet, but they think he'll be all right. He's not going anywhere tonight."

"He took a curse meant for Ron," Hermione said, her voice clear and matter of fact. "So I'm willing to trust him. He can't be all bad. I rather think he was trying to make up for what he did to you when he jumped between Ron and that curse."

"But Malfoy." Ron spat the name like it tasted bad. "He's locked in the dungeon with Snape by now. Serves the little bastard right."

"What do you mean by that -- locked in a dungeon?" Harry asked, dumbfounded. "Remember the last time we thought he was safely locked in the dungeon? Someone let him out."

"Well, that was probably Rhys, but even so, what if someone does let him escape, what then?" Hermione asked, giving him one of her know it all smiles. "Right now everyone on Voldemort's side thinks Malfoy betrayed him with a miraculous spell, capable of deflecting the Dark Lord's attack and stealing Hogwarts from his grasp. Of course the truth will come out eventually, but for now…"

Harry laughed as he realized that what she said was probably true. It wouldn't be long before Voldemort realized that Harry had escaped from the cave, but until then -- well -- until then, the joke was on them.

Ron grinned and Hermione giggled, then laughed along with him.

The sounds brought them company. Madam Pomfrey's office door opened again, bathing the room in golden light. Gliding across the dimly lit room, Dumbledore joined them. He seemed like his usual self, despite the ordeal of bolstering the wards against the attack.

"Ah, I'm glad you're awake," Dumbledore said, smiling softly. "And in good spirits it seems."

One look at Ron and Hermione was all it took to sober them up.

"I…we were just going, Professor," Hermione said, pulling on Ron's arm. "Good night, Harry."

They beat a hasty retreat from the infirmary, leaving Professor Dumbledore and Harry alone in the dim light.

"I daresay you've had an interesting time of it these past few weeks, Harry"

"Yes, sir," Harry said, taking another long drink of water to soothe his raw throat.

"It's nice to see you again. We had wondered where you'd gone." Lowering his tone, he added. "Miss Weasley told us the story -- at least the part she knew."

At the mention of Ginny, Harry wondered again if she was all right.

"Madam Pomfrey checked Miss Weasley over before I spoke to her. I believe she sent her to bed with a strong potion." Dumbledore paused. The dim light of the bedside lamp, flickered on his glasses, for a moment. "Now…I wonder if you're up to a bit of chat. There are a few questions I hope you'll be able to answer."

That was a bit of a change. Usually it was Harry looking for answers from Professor Dumbledore. He shook his head in disbelief.

Dumbledore held up a small book. Harry recognized the tangled tree on the front. "I hope you don't mind, Harry. I took the liberty of looking through this while you were resting."

"You were worried about the spell," he said, taking the book back and smoothing the front cover with his right hand. He could understand the Headmaster reading the book. After all, he was the Headmaster at Hogwarts. The responsibility for the school was on his shoulders.

"Curious might be a better word, Harry. It was, after all, immediately apparent that your spell had succeeded in safeguarding Hogwarts," Dumbledore said, the corners of his mouth slightly curling. "I would appreciate some of the details – if you feel able. I understand some of the basics of the spell. It's not a cosmetic change such as one would expect when something is hidden under the Secret Keeper spell. It's not an illusion. Hogwarts has shifted slightly – outside of its former space, has it not?"

Nodding, Harry fingered the book. "It is the same space, separate from the original, but it has shifted just the same. It's not like the wizard space inside of a trunk where space has been expanded. The torch is essentially a time spell. Hogwarts has been moved, shifted outside of normal time, the place, not the people. The spell is designed to protect people from anything that might harm them, predatory animals, men with evil intent. I suspect that it might even affect the weather."

Harry felt his eyes drift closed. He couldn't help himself. The effort of talking with his friends and now Dumbledore was taking its toll. He started to feel the fog returning to his mind.

"That explains why Hogwarts has enjoyed such sunny days while you've been resting, Harry." Dumbledore patted his arm, giving him a worried look. "The rest of my questions can wait. You seem fatigued."

"No that's all right." Harry forced his eyes open. He'd need to stay awake to go find Ginny anyway. Maybe if he focused on talking to Dumbledore he could fight off the fuzziness that was settling in. He could tell that Dumbledore had more question, but didn't want to ask, so he asked one for him. "You want to know where I found the tanglewood?"

Dumbledore nodded. "More precisely, how did you know where to look? Tanglewood trees were hunted to extinction thousands years ago. Even in Merlin's time, they were thought to be only a legend. Stories persisted about them, of course, it was said that they grew only inside the deepest woods, that they had no natural protection of their own and they would give up their precious limbs to anyone who asked for one. So many years have passed that their existence has been relegated to children's stories."

In his mind's eye, Harry saw the storm of lights in the cave, followed by the visions.

Then he began to explain as much as he could, about Rhys springing the trap set by Voldemort, about the weeks spent in the white cave and the ruby coming to life. He'd just told the story to Ron and Hermione, but with the Headmaster, he was careful to include every little detail.

Dumbledore listened patiently to the story of his quest, first to understand the mystery, then to find the materials to construct the torch. When Harry finally finished, he asked, "And the torch? How long is it likely to keep Hogwarts hidden?"

"I put as much energy into the spell as I could but I simply don't know," Harry said, with a shrug. "You'd probably like a better answer than that…but I'm just not sure. I did my best, but… "

The torch at Hart Fell had lasted for centuries, but that was made by Merlin himself. Harry couldn't imagine that the torch he'd constructed would last nearly that long.

"The drawback is that from now on, someone who was inside Hogwarts during the construction of the torch will have to act as a guide," Harry said, unable to keep the worry out of his voice. "If anyone comes to visit or…even next year when new students arrive…someone who was here will have to be their guide through the gates. No one else will be able to find their way."

Dumbledore waved him off. "A mere inconvenience, Harry. A fair exchange for the safety the school now enjoys," Dumbledore said, waving Harry off. "You've shown great courage once again, Harry, putting the safety of others above your own."

"And if the last person involved dies without removing the torch spell, no one will be able to find Hogwarts." Harry kept a close eye on Dumbledore, trying to gauge the Headmaster's reaction to his next question. "But what about people like…Malfoy or Rhys? They'll be able to lead people into Hogwarts as well."

There were probably others too, people whose loyalties hadn't been tested yet.

"The wards are still in place. Hogwarts is more protected than ever. What's really on your mind, Harry?"

"What about Rhys?" Harry asked, looking over at the only other occupied bed in the infirmary.

"The story he gave Miss Weasley is that he was coerced into helping Voldemort. He was trying to protect his mother and sister. He behaved wrongly and foolishly. Whether he acted out of a concern for his family or not…he could have cost you your life. The Order has taken steps to protect his family from retaliation." Dumbledore sounded so in control, as if he'd thought of everything. "Unfortunately, he and Draco Malfoy have both shown where their loyalties lie."

"With Voldemort?"

"With themselves."

"What are you going to do with them?"

"Nothing for the moment. Whatever their sympathies, neither of them have anywhere else to go. I expect if they posed a threat to the school at the time you cast the spell, they would have been expelled from the grounds along with all of the other creatures Voldemort had assembled."

Harry nodded. "Or it could have been that they were both unconscious."

His eyelids felt heavy again. Closing them, he imagined for a moment, Malfoy flying through the air along with the menacing trolls and the crazed dragons.

"Is Malfoy still wearing my face?"

"Does that bother you, Harry?"

"Yes…but it doesn't seem to have fooled anyone." Harry smiled at the thought of his friends ferreting out Malfoy's deception. "But I don't like the idea of him impersonating me. He should be held somewhere until the spell can be broken."

"I'm sure it won't surprise you to find out that Professor Moody was able to break the illusion charm on young Malfoy. He is restored to his original appearance."

"Malfoy's like some kind of poisonous snake," Harry said, frowning. "Whether we keep him with us or make him leave…he'll always be a threat."

Dumbledorenoddedhis agreement, pattingHarry'sarm again. "For now, we shall keep him in our custody. His mother is still missing. The Death Eaters would kill him first and ask questions later. Professor Snape has taken on the responsibility of keeping Mr. Malfoy safely hidden. He won't be allowed out of his chambers."

"How long do you think it will be before Voldemort realizes that it was me and not Malfoy?"

"I do not know, but I am encouraged by these recent events. It always helps for your opponent to underestimate your strengths. It won't be long before you are forced to face him, Harry, use what little time you have to prepare."

Harry looked up at the Headmaster sharply. Embarrassed, he fumbled around for the right thing to say, but it just came out as a still of um's and er's.

"That surprises you, Harry?" Dumbledore seemed amused. "I do know that until Voldemort figures out that you are the one that cast the spell on Hogwarts, it won't just be Mr. Malfoy's life that is in grave danger."

"That isn't really new information. But Malfoy,he'll be in dangereven afterwards…I mean…will Voldemort or his followers ever really be able to trust him again?" Harry lifted his chin and looked Dumbledore in the eye. "Will you be able to trust Rhys, knowing that he was once under Voldemort's control?"

"I'm afraid once trust has been broken, it takes something extraordinary to reestablish it." Dumbledore shook his head sadly. "For the safety of the Order…we can't continue to trust Rhys unless he proves himself in some way."

"He saved Ron. Maybe he could find a way to help the Order." Harry suggested.

Dumbledore looked at him proudly. "Forgiveness is a quality that separates wizards from kneazles, Harry. It's never an easy path to follow."

Covering his yawn with his hand, Harry couldn't hide the sleepiness in his eyes. "There aren't so many of us that we can give up on each other. We're stronger together than we are apart. Isn't that what the sorting hat keeps saying?"

Dumbledore doused Harry light with a wave of his hand, then began to glide toward the door. "I can see that you are in need of your rest. We'll talk more tomorrow, Harry."

Letting his eyes drift partially closed, Harry saw the Headmaster's long robes as he floated across the infirmary floor and slipped through the doors.

When the doors shut behind him, Ginny appeared out of thin air. She pulled Harry's Invisibility Cloak off and slung it over her arm. Even though she stood in shadow, Harry could make out her bright hair– and the bright golden bird perched on her shoulder.

Shoes clicking across the hard floor, she moved toward him. "I…thought I should return this," she said quietly, placing his cloak at the foot of his bed.

"Ginny, I can't believe you're here. I was just coming to look for you." Harry watched Aurora flutter gracefully to the foot of his bed. "Has she been with you this whole time?"

"Day and night, Harry. I'm guessing you told her not to leave my side." Ginny almost laughed, then fell silent for a long moment.

Harry could see she was struggling to ask him something so he decided to wait until she came out with it. Finally she spoke.

"Why?" She asked under her breath, her voice sounding strained.

"I thought – mm -- " Harry tried to sit up so he could reach her hand and was instantly wracked with pain.

Ginny winced at the sight. Moving quickly to his side, she poured him a glass of water from the pitcher on his bedside table. "I…um…here," she said, holding the glass out to him.

Taking a small swallow, Harry caught a glimpse of her face in the moonlight and realized that his injuries were probably the only thing keeping her from hexing him at the moment. Sweat broke out on his brow from the pain of the curse.

Waving his hand at the large array of Potions bottles on his table, he tried to make conversation. "Are all of these for me?"

Ginny nodded and straightened the row of bottles, finally picking up a blue one and pouring out a spoonful for him. "You should be sleeping. You were hit by a nasty curse," she said.

Harry took his medicine dutifully, thinking she looked rather grim. He knew it was a stupid thing to say, but he couldn't stop himself. "You're just wishing you'd been the one to hex me."

Ginny's back straightened. "Is that supposed to be some sort of a joke?" she asked. "Because -- "

Harry interrupted, "Please…forgive me…I had to go – "

"Alone," she finished for him. "Yes, I had worked it out that you felt that way. But that doesn't make it easier."

Harry fell back against the pillow and listened. With her back to the light, he couldn't see her face properly, but he could hear the tremor in her voice.

"You and Ron – and even Hermione – you're always risking your own skins to make sure others are safe. You're always doing it." Ginny raised her voice as she warmed to her subject. "You went after the Sorcerer's Stone, braved the Chamber of Secrets…even last year, you were trying to save Sirius as the Department of Mysteries. I didn't do anything you wouldn't have done, coming after you in that cave. I think I've proved myself."

"I'm sorry, Ginny. I didn't think."

"And I found you and it was wonderful. I didn't mind all the risks -- then suddenly I was back to waiting around with all the worry and the fear that goes along with it."

Harry did understand. He wasn't very good at waiting around himself.He still couldn't see her expression,but he could hear the emotion in her voice. Anyway, his eyelids felt incredibly heavy from the potion. He couldn't keep them open much longer.

She rubbed her hands over her face like she was trying to keep awake. "I'd better go…get some sleep Harry."

Harry tried to speak, but his voice sounded slurred. "The torch...I had to try...I'm sorry…Ginny."

"Your spell worked, Harry, but now you need to rest."

"Wait…" Harry said, feeling as though he were about to step into a mine field. She didn't even want to talk about it. He'd always thought that it was only a matter of time before he did something so stupid that she wouldn't want to be around him.

Shaking her head, Ginny said, "Maybe we better just leave it for tonight. It's late. You need your rest."

All the blood drained from his face, as she walked away. Barely able to stand, Harry nonetheless stepped barefoot onto the cold floor and hurried to follow. He caught up to her by the exit and held onto her upper arms to steady himself. She stiffened as if she didn't want him touching her so he dropped his hands, but he still tried to speak. He couldn't stand the thought that he might have saved the castle, but lost her in the process.

She kept her back to him, listening to his stumbling apology. The plain truth was that she knew she wouldn't last another day staying angry with him. Not after weeks of missing him. She'd already missed too much – his voice, his grin…even his scowl and the way he twirled a piece of her hair sometimes when he was working himself up to say something.

"Sorry…it's just…I couldn't stand it if you were hurt…and I could have prevented it," Harry said, his voice breaking and his breath coming hard. "Forgive me…"

Of course, she'd forgive him. Harry was too important to her now. She'd risked her life for him as he had for her – and she knew she'd do it again if she had to. But it wasn't just that.

She knew what it felt like to forgive and be forgiven. Even if she hadn't been through the Chamber of Secrets, she grew up in a large family. She'd made her own share of mistakes. She'd disappointed people, even people that meant the world to her. And she knew that feeling – that need to get past things -- so that even when things were difficult, they would continue to mean the world to each other.

So she listened carefully as Harry tried to explain, coming apart a bit in the process of owning up to what he'd done, and she heard that same need in his voice.

"I…I'm not sure…how to make this better…please…we didn't know what was happening." He stopped and she felt his hand on her shoulder briefly, as though he'd reached for her and thought better of it. "I…I know you already know all of this. And…anyway…thanks for the rescue…"

At this last she heard a deep, resigned sigh. It tickled the hairs on the back of her neck and she had to bite her lip to hold back a moan as the prospect of what might come next filled her mind. Although he'd taken his hand away, she could feel his warmth behind her, standing close but not quite touching her back. He was only a step away.

He began to speak again, "Please, Ginny – "

Turning around and putting her finger to his lips, she whispered, "Shh…"

Their eyes locked, his bright with emotion, hers communicating everything he wanted to hear.

She watched as the misery in his face faded away, replaced by another expression, one full of hope and awe. Then her eyes fluttered shut as Harry kissed her softly, just a whisper of his lips over hers, but enough to warm them both all the way through.

A/N: Thanks for reviewing! Your comments are always welcome.


	37. The Journey Home

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling, Warner Brothers and its various publishers own Harry Potter. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: Thanks to everybody who reviewed! I've loved reading them. This is the final chapter. 

**Chapter 37  
****The Journey Home**

The sun broke over the hills, promising a beautiful day. A light fog had lifted off the lake and stretched over the grounds, bathing Harry's running path in a pale mist. The air felt fresh and cool on his face.

Even though the term was over, and they'd all be boarding the Hogwarts Express after breakfast, Harry felt like he had to take his last chance to run over the familiar paths around the lake with Aurora circling overhead and swooping down to fly along with him. After his time spent trapped in the cave and then held captive by Madam Pomfrey in the infirmary, running made him feel free.

Besides, today was the day he planned to strike out on his own. He'd thought about it ever since the night he'd woken in the infirmary. Dumbledore's insistence that Harry return to live with the Dursleys while Lupin was off on a mysterious mission for the Order helped Harry make up his mind. He had a small window of opportunity while the Death Eaters thought he had died in that cave, but it wouldn't last.

Someone on the other side was bound to start thinking that Draco Malfoy was a little too good at playing Harry Potter to be believed. Then they'd start looking more carefully at that collapsed hillside in Wales. Eventually, the Death Eaters would become suspicious -- especially as Harry continued to resume his normal life.

He laughed to himself at the thought of his life ever being considered "normal." But he had returned to classes, taken his exams, and even caught the Snitch to win the Quidditch final against Hufflepuff.

Harry could seize this chance to launch a surprise offensive Voldemort and his followers, but he knew that Dumbledore would never agree, and neither would his friends. At the very least they might insist on coming with him, and he didn't want any of them in harm's way. He had to figure out a way to let them know without giving them a chance to follow.

Climbing back up to the sixth year boys' dorm, Harry mused briefly that soon the sign on the door would say 'seventh years' whether he returned to school or not. In ordinary times, he'd have one more year before leaving school to find his way in the world, but these weren't ordinary times. Voldemort had already taken out his frustration at failing to overtake Hogwarts by attacking elsewhere.

When he'd left for his morning run, his roommates had mostly been snoring behind their bed hangings. Now, returning after a quick shower, Harry hurried inside to find pandemonium in the form of Neville Longbottom. Clothes and curious looking plants were spread around the room on every available surface.

"What's going on?" Harry asked Ron under his breath.

Pausing on his way to the door, Ron's lips twitched as he said, "Neville's packing."

Looking very distressed, Neville looked over at them sharply. Ron escaped to the showers, leaving Harry to face Neville alone.

Dancing on his feet slightly, Neville said, "Professor Sprout gave me a special trunk to take some of my experimental plants home for the summer, but…they don't all fit."

He waved his arm wildly at the mess. At first glance it appeared that Neville's clothes were strewn everywhere, but on closer examination, there did appear to be several exotic looking plants in the room underneath.

"Don't some of these plants belong to Luna?" Harry asked, recognizing a few of the odder specimens.

"They are. I offered to help her out." Neville seemed a bit flustered as he tried to explain. "She's touring the Alps with her father -- something about high altitude garden gnomes. She'll be there all summer, and I thought…well...she'll want to know how her plants are doing. So if I'm taking care of her plants, she'll want to write to me."

Still lounging in his four poster bed, Seamus raised his eyebrows and said, "You should just ask her out, mate. Save yourself a whole lot of bother."

Silently agreeing with Seamus, Harry finished dressing. Even after months and months of working together on their Greenhouse projects, Neville hadn't yet worked up the nerve to tell Luna how he felt.

Neville walked over to a large, broad-leafed plant and tried unsuccessfully to pull free the tee shirt it had clamped between its prickly leaves.

"Some of them aren't very cooperative," he said.

"Hey…that's mine!" Seamus shouted at him, climbing out from behind his curtains just in time to hear a loud ripping noise.

Harry concentrated on finding his own clothes, turning away to hide his mirth as Neville mumbled his apology and Seamus grumbled about his shirt. He was glad that he'd done most of his packing the night before -- especially since the invasion of Neville's plants -- but he wanted to be sure he hadn't left anything behind. He was looking under the bed when Dean came in the room.

All Harry could see was his feet, but he heard him loud and clear.

"Wait until you see Ginny this morning," he said, to Seamus. "She's wearing one of those things with the thin little straps – wha…what? Oh…"

With that last, Harry pulled his head out from under the bed. Seamus and Neville both grimaced and went back to sorting out their belongings.

"Er…this is um…didn't see you there," Dean said, looking chagrined. "Don't suppose we could just pretend I didn't say that?"

Harry knew he was scowling at his roommate, but he couldn't seem to help himself. He tried to tell himself that it couldn't be helped. Seamus and Dean were always talking about the various girls at Hogwarts, especially their…er…physical attributes. Ginny was a very pretty girl. Other blokes were bound to notice her. It just reminded him that they wouldn't be able to see much of each other for a while.

Hands up in surrender, Dean said, "I didn't mean…"

"Didn't mean what?" Ron asked, walking in rubbing his neck with a towel. "Hey, Harry…you should hurry up. Ginny's waiting for you right outside."

His scowl turning to a small grin, Harry dropped the lid of his trunk and quickly shrunk it to fit in his pocket. Ignoring Dean completely, he muttered his thanks to Ron, grabbed Hedwig's empty cage and headed toward the door.

Dean gave a small sigh of relief as the door closed.

The moment Harry was in the hall he forgot all about his roommates. Ginny was indeed standing innocently outside the door, leaning against the wall. She was wearing a soft blue sundress with tiny little straps. Her Hogwarts robe hung over her arm.

Her hair was down and slightly curled at the ends. She seemed to be all polished and poised. No wonder Dean had taken notice.

"You look…nice," Harry said, wishing he could think of a better compliment.

Sighing, Ginny said, "Well…now that the final exams are finished some of the girls decided to have fun last night." She flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "You know how Lavender can be."

Harry pulled her into his arms to kiss her good morning,thenled her toward the stairs. "We have to get to breakfast. I'm starving."

Ginny chattered about the latest news from Lavender and Parvati on the way down the moving staircases. Preoccupied with his plans, Harry only half listened, but Ginny didn't seem to notice. The two of them reached the Entrance Hall quickly.

Ginny gave him a thoughtful look and sighed. "I'm going to miss you," she said. "I can't believe I'm actually dreading summer. It's usually my favorite season. It won't be any fun until Dad rescues you from the Dursleys."

Two grubby looking Hufflepuffs elbowed past them in the crowded Entrance Hall as they chased each other into breakfast. Harry was glad of the interruption. He still didn't know how to tell Ginny that he wasn't planning on going to the Dursleys. He'd owled them this morning, telling them that he'd made other plans for the summer. Hedwig was supposed to deliver a message to them and then head for the Burrow. She'd be safe with the Weasleys.

Hermione was already at breakfast, strangely enough sitting with Hannah Abbott. They greeted Ginny and Harry pleasantly and then went back to conversing rather heatedly about leaving Hogwarts. Hannah and some others had petitioned the school governors to keep the school open over the summer, but the petition hadn't changed anyone's opinion. They'd refused to break with tradition.

Harry and Ginny exchanged looks and settled into their seats, sitting side by side across from Hermione and Hannah.

"I think we should do _something_. We'd be much safer staying here." Hannah's voice squeaked on the last syllable.

Harry decided to stay out of their argument and focused instead on putting eggs and bacon on his plate, pretending that he hadn't seen Hermione's pleading look. Clearly she wanted his help calming Hannah down, but Harry couldn't think of anything that might help. Instead, he poured a mug of tea for Ginny, fixing it just the way he knew she liked it.

She gave him the sly grin of appreciation that she gave him every morning as he handed over her tea. He'd missed this little morning ritual. Sometimes he thought it was the little things in the day--moments of familiarity like handing Ginny her tea--that made him feel connected to his friends. Maybe Hannah had a point. They should all stay here. At least then they could be together every day.

"We'll have to face the world sometime, Hannah," Hermione said, always the reasonable one. "No use postponing it."

Crumpling her copy of the Daily Prophet which had a big article on the front page detailing the latest Death Eater attacks, Hannah made a huffing noise. "I suppose you agree with her, Harry."

With a glance toward Ginny who was staring happily into her tea mug, Harry said, "Not entirely…I see your point. We have a safe haven at Hogwarts."

Hermione seemed like she was about to say something, but Harry beat her to it. "But…" he said, drawing out the word. "We aren't meant to hide here out of fear. Won't you be glad to see your family, Hannah? Besides, Hogwarts is only as safe as we make it."

He stopped there. He didn't want it widely known that any one of the Hogwarts students could lead the Death Eaters through the protection of the torch.

Seeming satisfied with his answer, Hermione gave a smug nod. "See? Harry knows what's what. Life goes on. We must move forward. Make our own choices. We can't let ourselves be ruled by fear."

With that, the conversation moved forward without any further input from Harry, who was more interested in the small hand that had worked its way into his.

Propping an elbow on the table, Ginny leaned toward him. Her hair swung down to curtain her face so that only Harry could see her expression.

"I'll be waiting for you at the Burrow. You must come to stay as soon as you can," she said, conspiratorially.

She knew that Dumbledore had told Harry that he needed to stay with the Dursleys at least until his birthday, but she'd made it clear that she didn't like the idea very much.

Keeping his face close to hers, Harry and she held a whispered and somewhat lopsided conversation. Mostly Ginny wanted to talk about what they might do at the Burrow, picnics by the pond, walks in the woods. The longer she spoke, the guiltier Harry felt. He had to figure out how to tell her that he planned to strike out on his own.

"Hey you two want to watch it." Ron's voice broke in. "There are young, impressionable people trying to eat their breakfast here."

Straightening up, Ginny went back to staring at her tea and Harry lifted his fork and began to pick at his eggs.

"I hope you're not including yourself in that category." Hermione said, looking askance at the huge pile of food on Ron's plate.

"Mm 'ungry," Ron answered with his mouth stuffed full.

"You're eating as though this will be your last decent meal," Ginny said, shooting Harry a furtive look. "Mum won't be happy to hear what you think of her cooking."

Harry wondered briefly what Ginny's parents would think of his decision to become independent. He imagined Mrs. Weasley would be glad that he was at least away from the Dursleys. Still, they'd be upset with him.

Smiling as brother and sister launched into an ever growing list of what their Mum would probably want to do to the other one when they got home, Harry didn't take much notice of their banter. He looked around the Great Hall. The enchanted ceiling showed a solid blue sky. Professor Sinistra and Professor Flitwick were the only teachers at the head table.

Since the attack, Dumbledore and MacGonagall had been busy supervising the reconstruction of Hogwarts' outbuildings, missing many meals in the process.

Rhys had been transferred to St. Mungo's the morning after the attack on Hogwarts. According to Madam Pomfrey, the fencing instructor would eventually make a full recovery, but for now, he had no control over his magic and that made him a danger to himself and anyone who came near him without adequate protection spells. As far as Harry knew, no one had told Rhys about his escape from the cave.

Snape hadn't been seen much outside of the Potions classroom. Presumably, he was too busy in the dungeons.

There hadn't been any talk about Draco Malfoy. As far as the general student population was concerned, Draco had been missing since the Valentine's Day attack in Hogsmeade. Only Harry and a few of his friends knew any different and they were sworn to secrecy.

The Great Hall was only partly full. Breakfast at Hogwarts was always somewhat informal, but Harry noticed with interest that the four houses were intermingled throughout the Great Hall. The Ravenclaws and Huffflepuffs seemed to be scattered throughout the room. Harry definitely recognized some of them sitting with Sophie Moon and Blaise Zabini at the Slytherin table. Neville was the only Gryffindor sitting with the Ravenclaws. It wasn't much, but at least they'd made some inroads toward house unity this year.

Harry's attention drifted to the Slytherin table. Their numbers had been severely depleted before the end of the term. Nott, Crabbe, Goyle and quite a few others had left school before exams. Rumor had it that they weren't planning on returning.

Pansy Parkinson was sitting all by herself, set apart from her classmates by her own choice, Harry imagined. He wondered if she had any idea that Draco Malfoy was being held in the dungeons. Did she know he'd already taken the Dark Mark? Her eyes met his across the room and for a brief moment she looked almost vulnerable. Harry lifted his goblet of juice and tipped it toward her for a moment. She lifted her chin and her usual haughty expression returned. Harry was left wondering where she might fit into the events of the last few months.

The rest of breakfast continued in this contemplative haze, with Harry thinking about his friends and schoolmates. Ginny left with some of her roommates, giggling madly over something that had happened to one of them. He watched her walk away, looking bright and happy, and resolved to wait until the last moment possible to tell her he was leaving.

After Ron had sopped the last possible dregs of yolk from his plate with increasingly small corners of toast, he, Harry and Hermione walked down to the Hogwarts Express. Harry kept a pace behind his friends, content to listen to the two of them discussing whether the Chudley Cannons had any chance next season. Although she was bravely holding up her side -- mostly with encouraging nods and uh-hunh's -- Harry knew it was a labor of love on Hermione's part that she even tolerated this topic of conversation.

They stepped up onto the platform, dodging some younger students. Up ahead, Harry caught sight of Hagrid herding a group of first years onto the train. Harry smiled.

"Find a compartment near the back. I'll meet you there," Harry said, handing Hedwig's empty cage to Ron.

He walked up behind Hagrid, wondering why the giant was wearing his big, heavy coat in the bright sunshine.

"Planning a trip somewhere north?" he asked, pulling on Hagrid's furry lapel.

"Harry! I was 'oping I'd have a chance to see you off today." Hagrid pulled him into one of his trademark bear-sized hugs. "You'll be all right with 'em Muggles? I reckon if yeh need anythin', you just 'ave to give us a shout."

"I'll be all right, Hagrid. Don't worry about me." Harry shrugged. It wouldn't do to tell Hagrid he had no plans to return to the Dursleys. He might try to stop him. "And you'll keep track of things here at Hogwarts?"

"Keepin' the keys got a lot easier when yeh made the place disappear." Hagrid chucked his fist against Harry's shoulder. "Yeh just be careful. 'em Muggles aren't the only thing to be worryin' about out there in the world. But don' be forgettin' that we're all in this together. Yeh can call on any one of us if you find yourself in a tight spot."

Just then another group of first years clamored onto the platform. Hagrid chuckled, and patted Harry on the shoulder.

"Well, I best be about me duties. Plenty to keep me busy what with all the reconstruction," he said. "Yeh 'ave a good trip back now."

Nodding, Harry held back a flinch at the accidental pounding. "I will," he said. "Good bye, Hagrid."

He climbed into the train as Hagrid turned his attention to the first years who were beginning to swerve towards the sweets trolley being loaded two cars down. Harry watched Hagrid turn the tide of students with one sweep of his long arm, and laughed before walking down the carriage.

Hagrid was right of course, Harry didn't have to face the world alone. It reminded him of the year before, when some of the Order members greeted the Dursleys at the station with him. Professor Moody had even threatened them on his behalf. None of them were likely to approve of himgoing offon his own, but he knew he could count on them for help, should he need it. And come the end of July, they'd have no say in the matter anyway. He'd be an adult wizard.

Harry found Ron in a compartment with Neville who had brought two of his plant-laden trunks with him. There was a faint odor of jungle already filling the air.

Ron was sitting by an open window, looking a little put out. "Hermione's already taking a turn up and down the train to make sure things are in order. Auditioning early for that Head Girl badge, I expect."

"Like there's any contest for the position." Harry nodded in sympathy.

The door opened and Luna and Ginny joined them. As the train left the station, Ron left to find Hermione. Luna was soon involved in a deep discussion with Neville about the Broad-Leafed Snap Dragon. Harry presumed that was the plant that had eaten Seamus' shirt earlier that morning.

Ginny was soon asleep against his shoulder with a copy of the Quibbler opened across her lap. Harry pushed a lock of her silky red hair behind her ear and settled back to watch the familiar landscape pass by. As they moved away from the station, the blazingly blue sky became overcast. Eventually a light rain started splattering against the glass.

The torch spell had driven back the attack. For the moment the forces of darkness had scattered, but Harry knew that the most he'd done was protect Hogwarts – and who knew how long that protection would last. The rest of the Wizarding world was still vulnerable, and there wasn't any way to use a torch to protect them everywhere. The only lasting protection would be for him to face Voldemort—in all likelihood an enraged Voldemort -- to fulfill the prophecy.

It began to rain harder, drops smearing the train window, but the world beyond the train sped peacefully past. Would there be other days like this? Peaceful, uneventful days, spent in the company of the people who mattered most to him. He settled an arm more closely around Ginny's shoulder, and let his eyelids droop.

Harry must have dozed off, for he was startled awake by the arrival of Ron and Hermione.

"You didn't have to get in between them, Ron." Hermione sounded quite annoyed.

"Me? I was an innocent bystander. It was that annoying Hufflepuff bloke," Ron said, not bothering to keep his voice down either. "He's been hoping for a chance like this ever since the Quidditch final."

Straightening up and stretching, Harry realized that both of his friends were dripping wet. Standing face to face, hands on hips, they were in full blown bickering mode. Harry thought it was sort of endearing. He was going to miss this.

"Water fight?" Ginny asked, folding her copy of the Quibbler and reaching for her rucksack to put it away. She and Harry exchanged amused looks.

"Grrrr…" Hermione said.

"Oh…very elegantly phrased," Ron said, clearly trying to hold back a smile. "We were simply doing our prefect duties and restraining some rather exuberant students who were hosing each other down. I may have had to retaliate with a few water charms of my own…in the line of duty."

"Exuberant, Ron?" Hermione said, tilting her head. "Do you even know what exuberant means?"

"Well…that's what you called them." Ron shook his wet hair, spraying Hermione deliberately. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. I know a good drying spell."

Hermione relented as Ron pulled her in for a quick kiss.

"Ron!" she said, pulling away and taking her wand out to utter a brisk drying charm.

Hermione wasn't one for public displays, but they could all tell she'd forgiven Ron for taking part in the water fight. With everyone smiling and relaxed, it didn't seem like the right time for Harry to tell them his news, but he had run out of time. They would soon arrive at King's Cross. At least they were all assembled. He couldn't put it off any longer.

Reluctantly, he reached in his pocket and fingered the summons stone, calling Aurora to his side. She arrived in a flash. Harry looked around the compartment. Neville seemed shocked, Luna, curious, but Ron and Hermione's expressions quickly showed they understood what he was planning. Ginny's eyes brightened with tears, but she didn't say anything. He could tell that she knew what was on his mind, too.

"I have to go. It may be a mistake, but I have to do something. People are being killed, every day there are new reports. I'm supposed to find a way to put an end to it so…I have to go."

Hermione spoke first. "We can't say we didn't see this coming, Harry."

Ron nodded his agreement. "Whatever you have to do, we're in it with you. You don't have to go it alone."

"That's just it, Ron," Ginny said, before Harry had a chance to respond. "He does."

"Here I was worried that I wouldn't be able to explain," Harry said, holding his hands up in resignation. "I can see that you've all figured this out. I…I can't go back to the Dursleys as if nothing has happened. I've had my fill of waiting around…it makes me feel trapped and helpless. There's no way for me to sit there, protected and safe, while the rest of the Wizarding world suffers."

"What will you do?" Hermione asked, spreading her hands. "I mean…do you have a plan? They are going to come after you. Where will you go?"

"If I'm a target, at least I can be a moving one," Harry said with a small smile. Ginny was the only one who tried to smile back.

Looking around at their expectant faces, Harry cast a silencing charm on the compartment before continuing. "I trust every one of you, but it's safer for you, and safer for me, if you don't know where I am. The time seems right. The Death Eaters think I'm Draco Malfoy…and they'll kill me on sight for betraying their Dark Lord. If they find out that I'm the real Harry Potter, and that I survived the cave…I'm not sure I'll be any better off."

Harry went on to describe some of his plans for searching out and sabotaging the Death Eaters. To their credit, no one tried to talk him out of it. Neville vowed to help Harry any way that he could. Luna told him that her latest tarot reading had warned her that she was going to be part of a great adventure soon. Ron and Hermione repeated their determination to come with him, finally getting Harry to promise to contact them regularly. Ginny stayed silent, her eyes never leaving Harry's face.

"It isn't goodbye. I'll keep in touch," Harry said.

Harry startled as he felt the train begin to slow. "The Dursleys aren't expecting me. I sent them a message with Hedwig. She should be waiting for you at the Burrow. Would you take care of her for me…at least until I can find a way to be there myself?"

He lifted the empty cage up to Ginny. She took it from him with a sigh. Holding her close for a moment, he whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry there's no chance for a proper goodbye, but it won't be for long. I'll come to you at the Burrow. Use your mirror. Keep it secret."

A screech from the train wheels drowned out his words, but he could tell from her grin that she took his meaning. The train was stopping. Through the window, Harry could see the usual bedlam on the platform at King's Cross. Parents and friends craned their necks to find familiar faces among the crowd of students that had begun to disembark.

"It'll be all over the Daily Prophet tomorrow. Harry Potter disappears off the Hogwarts Express," Ron said, shaking his head as he pulled luggage off the overhead rack. "But you let us worry about all that. I reckon that's the least of your problems now."

"You know where to find us, Harry," Hermione said, her forehead knitted together with concern. The others echoed her sentiment.

While everyone else busied themselves with their trunks, Ginny threw her arms around Harry's neck and hugged him fiercely before releasing him. Then with a quick nod, she grabbed her bag and turned to go.

Harry Disapparated with Aurora before anyone had left the compartment. The beautiful clearing in Hart Fell would be a safer place than the Dursley's home had ever been. The weather was perfect, just as it had been at Hogwarts. Blue sky and lush green forests surrounded him. Aurora sang a familiar sweet tune as she flew toward her nest.

This would be his refuge, as it had once been Merlin's. No one could find him here because the only living being who had been around when the ancient wizard cast his torch spell was the phoenix. Harry was sure now that she had once belonged to Owain, Merlin's trusted apprentice.

But Harry knew that he was no Merlin, or even an Owain. He was still woefully ignorant of the dark forces arrayed against him. It seemed to him that it no longer mattered if he was prepared enough or powerful enough. Time was running out. It was certain that it was down to him to defeat the most evil wizard of the century. He didn't have the luxury of waiting until he'd mastered more knowledge or gained more experience. He'd have to rely on courage.

He sat down to wait for the sun to set. It wouldn't be much longer. Then he could Apparate to the Burrow to see Ginny. It would be safe as long as he visited in secret. After all they'd been through together, he wasn't going to stop seeing her. His friends — his family really, would be there as well, welcoming him to their home in a way that the Dursleys never had.

Thinking about the Dursleys reminded him of all those years he'd spent, feeling unwanted and unlovable. His friends — especially Ginny — made him feel just the opposite and there wasn't any force in the world that could make him push them away. He knew how fragile life could be.

Maybe someday he would make this his home. Looking around the beautiful clearing, he imagined a small cottage like the ones he'd seen in Hogsmeade with a flagstone path leading through overgrown flowerbeds in the front garden and windows glowing with light in the gathering dusk.

For now, Hart Fell would be his retreat, but the bright days here would never be enough until he knew he could share them with his friends. And, to his way of thinking, the dark days were going to vastly outnumber the bright ones until he found a way to succeed.

The End

A/N: Notes to reviewers:

**pyrobabe7713, wackafrazzalicious, Preston78, CaityH, Nimbirosa, GryffRavHuffSlythendor, ali, kaiserzacc, SouthernBelle, tramp3834, murdrax, Lady of Masbolle, johnmenefee21, SillyGillie, RyougaZell, Rozie, Thee-Unknown-Factor, Ennui-EAF, rdprice29, david, Madoleine Tolkein , eyes of sky, xxxoliviaxxx, sarah , Kazanoe, MarinePotterfan, Silver Warrior, josh, icaro, HP fan 1111, reader, KandiG, devourer18, applesollie, Lady of the Dragon, tIgErPrN06, Gorav1, R-Krulle, imgonnadie, xarafu, Tori, DragonOverlord, Goyana, donkeykong27, Jeefus, Rkhiara, Silver Warrior, SillyGillie, dumbledoreluver, Ugly Duckling, Jessa 7, Jack-A-Roe, Demosthenes:**

Thanks for your reviews! You have all been generous and kind. I would write individual responses, but I probably would never get this posted. I apologize if I've left anyone out. Thanks for having faith that I wouldn't abandon the story. I finished writing this story in June, but it was badly in need of revision, especially this chapter, so I missed the opportunity to post it before the HBP made it alternate universe. Thanks for reviewing anyway! Some of you have been writing reviews all along and I want to express my appreciation. It was very thoughtful of you. And the reviews really did help motivate me.

**Ted M. Hammett: **Despite the fact that the Myrddin story leaves the final fight against Voldemort to the future, I don't plan a sequel because the story is now alternate universe. I would rather look at some of the new and interesting plot possibilities introduced by the HBP. Thanks for writing a review!

**Seal1:** Thanks for the sympathy. That's exactly why I've found it so difficult to proofread these last few chapters. The hardest part was deleting phrases that I had already written that now sounded too reminiscent of things JKR wrote a thousand times better in the HBP. Thanks for writing!


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